A  VOYAGE  OF  DISCOVERY 


Nooel  of 


NEW    YORK 

HARPER  &   BROTHERS,  FRANKLIN  SQUARE 
1  892 


Copyright,  1892,  by  HARPER  &  BROTHERS, 


All  rights  reserved. 


TO 
MY  DEAR  COMPANIONS 

ON 

A  VOYAGE   OF  DISCOVERY 
1f  Dedicate  tbese 


2072257 


J  d-  ex      I  -      <J    L/YTV^O 


A  VOYAGE  OF  DISCOYERY 


CHAPTER   I 

"  WHY  are  you  going  to  the  United  States  ?" 
asked  an  American,  no  longer  in  his  first  youth, 
of  a  young  Englishwoman,  on  board  the  Teutonic, 
the  second  day  after  they  had  left  Liverpool. 

The  sky  was  blue ;  the  sea  was  smooth  ;  the  hour 
was  noon.  The  lady  was  stretched  on  a  deck- 
chair  ;  the  American  sat  beside  her.  Both  were  fine 
types  of  their  races  ;  both  had  faces  which  arrest- 
ed and  held  the  attention.  Mr.  Quintin  Ferrars 
was  unusually  tall  for  an  American ;  his  limbs 
were  not  loosely  knit,  and  his  wralk  was  erect  and 
firm  —  attributes  more  common  to  the  dwellers 
in  the  prairie  than  to  those  on  Fifth  Avenue. 
He  had  a  resolute,  thoughtful  face,  over  which 
gleams  of  satire  were  more  apt  to  play  than  those 
of  sympathy ;  with  keen  eyes,  the  expression, 
even  the  color,  of  which  it  was  difficult  to  deter- 
mine. Neither  in  his  accent  nor  in  his  colloquial- 
1 


2  A  VOYAGE   OF  DISCOVERY 

isms  was  there  any  touch  of  the  peculiarity  which 
Ave  call  "  American,"  but  which  our  cousins  affirm 
to  be  drawn  through  conduits  of  heredity  from 
the  undefiled  well  of  English  speech  of  their  Puri- 
tan fathers.  Mr.  Ferrars  was  accused  of  being 
an  Anglomaniac ;  it  would  be  more  true  to  say 
that  he  was  keenly  critical  of  the  defects  in  his 
own  country.  But  then  he  was  critical  of  all 
things,  human  and  divine. 

The  young  Englishwoman,  in  her  tight-fitting 
Ulster  of  russet  tweed,  with  a  stalking-cap  of  the 
same  material,  beneath  which  her  abundant  au- 
burn hair  was  tightly  rolled,  was  tall,  and  had  a 
well-balanced  figure,  with  a  waist  sufficiently  large 
to  support  her  breadth  of  shoulder  and  finely 
developed  bust  without  suggesting  a  fear  that  it 
might  snap  in  two.  Her  clear  gray  eyes,  under 
dark,  level  brows,  had  a  singular  directness  of  out- 
look ;  the  fine  lines  of  her  somewhat  large  mouth 
as  much  variety  of  expression,  when  speaking,  as 
of  strength  and  sweetness  in  repose.  But  the 
chief  characteristic  of  her  handsome  face  was  the 
eager  interest  it  displayed  in  anything,  whether 
grave  or  gay,  that  moved  her ;  the  absence  of 
eelf -consciousness  in  her  intercourse  with  both 
men  and  women  ;  and  the  bright  smile,  which  was 
in  itself  an  enchantment.  She  had  great  animation 
of  manner,  a  frank  and  ringing  laugh,  and  a  ready 


A   VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  3 

tongue  ;  all  of  which  were  probably  calculated  to 
mislead  a  stranger  as  to  her  real  character. 

"  Why  are  you  going  to  the  United  States, 
Miss  Ballinger?"  again  asked  Mr.  Ferrars. 

"The  polite  answer  would  be  that  I  am  going 
to  see  your  country ;  but  that  would  not  be  quite 
true,"  answered  the  young  lady,  with  a  smile. 
"My  brother  wished  me  to  come.  I  am  doing 
so  for  the  sake  of  being  with  him." 

"You  won't  like  it.  Unless  you  go  to  the  Far 
West,  we  have  nothing  to  offer  you  that  you 
haven't  got  better  in  Europe." 

"People  interest  me  more  than  things.  One 
gets  wrong  ideas  of  Americans  from  those  one 
often  meets  travelling.  I  shall  like  studying  them 
on  their  own  soil." 

He  lit  a  cigarette  before  he  replied :  "  The  best 
types  you  will  probably  not  see.  They  do  not 
push  themselves  prominently  forward." 

Miss  Ballinger's  eyes  sparkled  with  amusement. 
"  One  would  really  think  your  object  was  to  dis- 
suade me  from  attempting  to  see  your  country." 

"  My  object  is  to  prevent  your  being  disappoint- 
ed. We  are  a  very  young,  raw  country.  Youth, 
in  the  educational  stage,  is  apt  to  offend  against 
good  taste.  We  are  made  up,  at  present,  of  odds 
and  ends.  You  are  sure  to  get  hold  of  some  odds. 
The  ends  require  to  be  unravelled." 


4  A  VOYAGE   OF  DISCOVERY 

"I  shall  try  and  unravel  them." 
"Your  brother  is  trying  to  do  so  now."  He 
glanced  down  the  row  of  deck-chairs  to  where  Sir 
Mordaunt  Ballinger  sat  on  a  stool  beside  the 
recumbent  figure  of  a  lady,  so  thickly  veiled  that 
it  was  impossible  to  see  if  she  were  young  or  old. 
"Have  you  made  Mrs.  Courtly's  acquaintance? 
She  is  rather  a  complicated  skein  to  unravel." 

"  We  have  exchanged  a  few  words — just  enough 
for  me  to  know  that  she  has  a  sweet  voice  and  a 
very  gracious  manner." 

"She  is  a  charming  woman,  and  a  clever  one. 
Not  that  she  does  anything  or  knows  anything 
particularly  well  —  at  all  events,  much  less  than 
half  our  highly  educated  women.  But  she  has 
that  fine  receptive  capacity  which  makes  her  seize 
the  scope  and  meaning  of  most  things  that  do 
not  demand  preliminary  study.  Of  course  she  is 
called  « superficial ;'  but  what  does  that  mean  ? 
That  she  has  the  artistic  instinct  unusually  devel- 
oped in  a  number  of  subjects,  and  an  insatiable 
curiosity  about  everything." 

"  I  had  no  idea  she  was  that  sort  of  person.  I 
thought  — I  had  been  told  that  she  was  very 
fond  of  admiration — and — " 

"  I  know  all  you  heard.  You  need  not  tell  me. 
She  is  often  misunderstood ;  most  of  all,  by  her 
own  sex.  She  is  fond  of  dress,  and  dancing,  and 


A   VOYAGE  OF  DISCOVERY  5 

admiration.  She  is  religious,  and  philosophical, 
and  pictorial,  and  poetical — what  is  she  not  ? — in 
turn.  But  she  is  never  ill-natured,  never  slan- 
derous. A  female  Proteus." 

"  You  evidently  know  her  well  ?" 

"  I  do,  but  we  have  always  met  in  Europe.  I 
have  never  visited  her  in  New  England,  where 
she  has  a  charming  house,  and  entertains  a  great 
deal." 

"  Has  she  been  long  a  widow — for  I  conclude 
she  is  one  ?" 

"Her  husband  died  several  years  since,  and 
she  has  never  yet  made  up  her  mind  to  change 
her  state.  She  had  one  desperate  love-affair 
long  ago.  Whether  it  is  that  has  prevented  her 
marrying  again,  or  whether  her  experience  of 
matrimony  was  not  such  as  to  make  her  desire  to 
repeat  the  experiment " — his  smile  was  not  pleas- 
ant as  he  said  that — "  I  do  not  know.  I  only  know 
she  is  the  best  friend  in  the  world,  and  that  wom- 
en are  jealous  of  her  because  she  attracts  all  sorts 
and  conditions  of  men.  The  lion  and  the  lamb 
lie  down  together  on  her  hearth-rug.  But  she 
loves  the  lion  better  than  the  lamb." 

"Mordannt  is  not  a  lion — neither  is  he  quite  a 
lamb,"  laughed  his  sister. 

"  Oh  !  but  he  will  be  made  a  lion  of  in  the 
States.  The  son  of  so  eminent  a  man  as  your 


6  A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY 

father  —  whose  name  was  so  prominent  in  our 
country  during  the  Alabama  dispute,  will  be  in- 
terviewed, and  banqueted,  and  have  receptions 
given  for  him,  all  the  time.  Most  of  this  you 
will  have  to  endure  also.  I  hope  you  won't  hate 
it  as  much  as  I  should." 

"I  can't  believe  that  you  are  right,  Mr.  Fer- 
rars ;  but  if  greatness  is  thrust  upon  me  in  this 
unexpected  manner,  I  hope  I  shall  be  amused.  I 
have  no  idea  of  expecting  to  be  bored  with  any- 
thing. A  sense  of  humor  carries  one  through  so 
much  ;  and  I  delight  in  American  humor." 

"If  you  expect  that  every  one  is  going  to  talk 
like  Mark  Twain,  you  will  be  mistaken.  You  will 
find  a  good  deal  of  unconscious  humor  occasion- 
ally in  the  sayings  and  doings  of  my  countrymen. 
I  hope  it  will  carry  you  through  those  dreary 
hours,  the  ladies'  luncheons,  and  all  those  terri- 
ble afflictions!" 

"  Must  they  be  afflictions  because  you  are  not. 
admitted  to  them  ?"  laughed  Miss  Ballinger. 

"  Not  necessarily.  But  the  tall  talk  of  superior 
women  is  bad  enough  when  it  has  to  bend  to  the 
level  of  our  comprehension.  What  it  must  be 
when  they  are  alone — " 

"  Well,  they  will  have  to  bend  to  the  level  of 
mine.  I  shall  collapse  if  they  ask  me,  as  Miss 
Lobb  did  this  morning,  '  what  influence  I  consid- 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  7 

ered  the  ancient  religions  of  Egypt  had  on  the 
manners  and  customs  of  the  Western  world  ?'  I 
murmured,  'I  suppose  it  has  tended  to  a  love  of 
cats,'  and  fled." 

Ferrars  laughed,  for  the  first  time.  "The  old 
maid  must  have  taken  it  as  personal.  I  think,  in 
some  prior  state  of  existence,  she  must  have  been 
a  cat,  though  I  doubt  the  Egyptians  worshipping 
her." 

"  Her  voice  is  very  trying.  Explain  to  me  why 
your  highly  educated  people  who  talk  so  much  of 
'  culture '  take  so  little  trouble  about  training  the 
voice  ?  For  the  voice  can  be  trained,  you  know." 

"  Certainly  it  can ;  and  our  singers  prove  that 
the  American  voice  is  a  raw  material  that  can  be 
worked  to  advantage.  But  then  singing  pays, 
and  speaking  doesn't." 

"Yet  you  are  much  given  to  'orating!'"  said 
Miss  Ballinger,  with  a  mischievous  twitch  of  her 
lips.  "  Is  not  every  American  born  to  hold  forth  ?" 

"  Well !  As  the  Yankee  said  when  he  stood 
before  Niagara  for  the  first  time,  '  What  hin- 
ders ?'  We  are  in  the  rapids  of  life.  Why  should 
the  cataract  of  our  impetuosity  be  checked  ?  We 
have  got  to  do  a  deal  of  talking  to  make  leeway 
and  overtake  other  nations." 

"  I  think  you  have  overtaken  them.  Are  you  a 
member  of  Congress  ?" 


8  A  VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY 

"  Heaven  forbid  !     What  should  I  do  there  ?" 
"  Serve  your  country,  I  suppose.     You  do  not 
strike  me  as  a  good  American,  Mr.  Ferrars." 

"  I  am  too  good  an  American,  and  too  irritable 
a  man,  to  stand  by  and  see  all  the  jobbery  and 
corruption  that  goes  on,  and  not  raise  my  voice. 
And  what  good  would  that  do,  even  if  I  were 
elected,  which  I  doubt  ?  There  are  men  shouting 
their  lungs  out  all  the  time;  there  are  papers, 

every  dajr,  denouncing  the  acts  of  a  man  like , 

and  yet  he  will  continue  to  be  a  member  of  our 
administration  until  he  is  hurled  from  power,  and 
the  opposition  set  up  their  gods  in  the  temple. 
That  is  the  result  of  our  beautiful  universal  suf- 
frage— what  you  are  fast  coming  to." 
"  Are  you  a  Democrat  or  a  Republican  ?" 
"  Who  can  say  what  he  is,  in  the  present  day  ? 
One  feels  disposed  to  vote  with  the  opposition, 
whatever  it  is." 

"Perhaps  that  is  your  principle  through  life," 
said  Miss  Ballinger,.  demurely,  as  she  bound  a 
Shetland  veil  round  her  face,  which  the  wind  was 
buffeting  too  roughly.  After  that  he  lost  the  sun- 
light, and  the  cloud-like  shadows  that  crossed  it. 
The  next  moment  she  continued,  "  You  spoke  of 
the  papers  just  now.  If  they  denounce  corrup- 
tion, they  are  not  as  bad  as  we  are  always  told 
they  are." 


A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

"Their  denunciations  lose  all  weight,  because 
they  vilify  every  one.  The  Angel  Gabriel  wouldn't 
be  safe  from  their  attacks.  No  man's  home  or 
his  most  private  domestic  concerns  are  sacred. 
No  lie  is  too  preposterous  for  them  to  invent ;  no 
scandal  too  hideous  for  them  to  propagate.  As 
no  man  who  brought  an  action  for  libel  in  the 
States  ever  got  substantial  redress,  they  cai-ry  on 
their  vile  trade  with  impunity — until  some  editor 
happens  to  be  shot  by  an  outraged  husband,  or 
father,  when  the  community  says,  complacently, 
"Ah!  served  him  right !"  Can  you  wonder  that 
the  best  citizens  often  shrink  from  the  pillory  of 
election  for  office,  whether  it  be  the  municipal 
town  council,  or  anything  else  ?  To  have  their 
early  difficulties,  their  family  griefs — it  may  be 
their  family  disgrace — their  most  secret  wounds, 
torn  open ;  to  be  pelted  with  the  rotten  eggs  of 
vilification  day  after  day — what  man,  unless  he 
be  made  of  adamant,  or  is  sunk  so  low  as  to  be 
absolutely  indifferent  to  public  opinion,  would 
willingly  subject  himself  to  all  this?" 

"  If  a  man  had  a  very  strong  sense  of  public 
duty,  and  if  his  record  were  a  clean  one,  I  should 
think  he  would.  How  are  things  ever  to  be  im- 
proved if  all  you  educated  men  say  this?  By 
the  bye,  what  do  you  do  with  your  life,  Mr. 
Ferrars  ?  Something  more  than  vibrate  between 
P^urope  and  America,  I  suppose  ?" 


10  A  VOYAGE   OF  DISCOVERY 

"  Well,  what  I  do  can  be  done  as  well  on  one 
side  of  the  Atlantic  as  the  other.  I  was  brought 
up  to  the  study  of  medicine.  But  I  gave  that  up 
when  I  was  still  young.  Now  I  do  nothing  but 

write." 

"  Caustic  criticism  of  your  own  country,  I  sup- 
pose ?  Anonymous  ?" 

"  Yes,  anonymous." 

"Perhaps  you  wrote  'Plutocracy,'  the  author- 
ship of  which  excited  so  much  curiosity,  a  few 
years  ago?" 

"I  should  not  own  it  if  I  had,"  he  replied, 
rather  sharply.  "  I  hold  Sir  Walter  Scott's  line 
of  conduct  quite  justifiable  in  such  cases.  No 
secret  could  be  kept  if  it  was  necessary  to  stand 
and  deliver  to  the  first  highwayman  who  demand- 
ed your  treasure." 

"  So  you  look  on  me  as  a  highwayman  ?"  laughed 
the  young  Englishwoman,  merrily.  "I  assure 
you  I  had  no  desire  to  rob  you  of — " 

"You  misunderstand  me,"  he  interrupted,  look- 
ing a  little  annoyed.  "  I  did  not  think  of  apply- 
ing the  image — a  stupid  one,  I  admit — to  you. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  I  never  write  fiction.  What 
I  do  write,  for  personal  reasons,  I  do  not  put  ray 
name  to ;  and,  consequently,  consider  myself  quite 
at  liberty  to  repudiate." 

The  gong  sounded  for  luncheon  at  this  mo- 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  11 

ment,  and  Sir  Mordaunt  rose  and  came  up  to  his 
sister.  He  was  a  tall  man,  with  rather  too  small 
a  head  for  his  height,  but  remarkably  well  built, 
and  with  that  indefinable  air  of  high  breeding 
which  is  a  gift  of  the  gods,  bestowed  now  and 
again  upon  the  low-born,  but  not  to  be  purchased 
nor  transmitted  ;  depending  neither  upon  the  tra- 
ditions of  Eton  nor  the  tailoring  of  Poole  or 
Johns.  He  had  a  frank,  intelligent  face,  with 
indications  of  possible  but  transient  explosion,  in 
the  quick  flash  of  the  eye,  and  occasional  contrac- 
tion of  the  brow.  But  he  was  more  disposed  to 
smile  than  to  scowl  through  life.  His  laugh,  and 
his  way  of  speaking,  strongly  marked  by  what 
Americans  call  "the  English  accent,"  resembled 
his  sister's ;  and  there  all  likeness  between  them 
began  and  ended.  Miss  Ballinger's  personality,  to 
a  close  observer,  conveyed  a  sense  of  reserved 
force  under  that  light  manner  and  readily  respon- 
sive smile  which  her  brother's  entirely  lacked. 
As  some  one  expressed  it,  "  all  his  goods  were  in 
his  front  shop-window."  There  was  nothing  to 
be  explored,  nothing  to  be  connived  at,  in  a  nat- 
ure affectionate,  if  not  very  profound ;  pleasure- 
loving,  and,  as  some  thought,  conceited  ;  quick- 
tempered, and,  as  some  thought,  occasionally  im- 
pertinent ;  a  nature  every  fold  of  which  was 
exposed  to  the  light  that  revealed  its  spots,  and 


12  A  VOYAGE   OF  DISCOVERY 

the  accretions  of  dust  that  are  apt  to  gather  upon 
goods  that  are  exposed  in  front  shop- windows. 

"  Come  along  to  luncheon,  Grace  !  I'm  as  hun- 
gry as  a  hunter.  How  do  you  get  on  with  that 
Yankee  ?  I  hope  he  was  as  entertaining  as  my 
widow.  She  is  perfectly  charming.  I  want  you 
to  talk  to  her.  She  knows  almost  as  much  as 
you  do  ahout  pictures  and  things — and  she  is 
awfully  amusing." 

"  I  have  been  listening  to  her  praises  from  Mr. 
Ferrars,  who,  by  the  bye,  is  not  a  Yankee.  He  is 
a  Southerner  by  birth,  and  a  cosmopolitan  by 
choice — an  odd  man,  and  clever  ;  but  I  don't  feel 
quite  sure  whether  I  like  him.  All  the  same,  I 
wish  his  seat  at  meals  was  next  me.  Mr.  Gun- 
ning, with  his  narrow  little  mind  centred  on  him- 
self, is  such  a  bore." 

"  Mrs.  Courtly  tells  me  he  is  '  a  dude,'  and  tre- 
mendously rich.  They  think  no  end  of  him  in 
New  York." 

"  I  dare  say ;  but,  as  his  riches  don't  interest 
me,  I  wish  I  hadn't  to  sit  next  him  three  times  a 
day  for  the  next  week.  I  had  so  much  rather 
have  that  nice  old  man,  Senator  something,  who 
looks  like  a  portrait  by  Tintoret,  with  his  white 
beard." 

"  What  a  queer  girl  you  are  !  always  cottoning 
to  old  men.  Gunning  is  a  good-looking  chap  ; 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERT  13 

talks  a  little  too  much  about  his  yacht  and  his 
athletics,  and  his  big  game  ;  but  I  don't  think 
he's  half  a  bad  sort." 

His  sister  smiled  a  subtle,  enigmatical  smile, 
and  gently  pinched  her  brother's  arm,  on  which 
she  leaned,  as  they  walked  along. 

"  How  well  I  know  you,  Mordy  !  You  wouldn't 
judge  him  so  leniently  if  he  were  a  penniless  Eng- 
lishman— '  something  in  the  city.'  You  are  at  pres- 
ent resolved  to  see  everything  American  en  beau." 

"  Of  course  I  am.  I  only  wish  I  had  an  Amer- 
ican girl  with  some  fun  in  her  next  me  at  table 
instead  of  that  Lady  Clydesdale." 

"  Well !  She  is  American  enough,  in  all  con- 
science, with  her  republican  ideas  !  She  seems 
to  me^ws  royaliste  que  le  roi,  if  one  can  use  such 
a  conservative  figure  of  speech  about  her." 

"  Only  the  fun's  wanting.  She  is  in  such  deadly 
earnest,  with  her  rights  and  her  wrongs,  and  her 
emancipation  from  social  slavery,  and  all  the  rest 
of  it." 

They  had  reached  the  saloon  by  this  time  ;  and 
most  of  the  famished  passengers  were  already 
seated.  Opposite  Sir  Mordaunt  Ballinger  and  his 
sister  sat  a  couple  concerning  whom  Grace  felt  a 
mild  curiosity.  It  had  not  been  sufficiently  strong 
to  prompt  her  to  speak  hitherto  ;  and  they  were 
so  quiet  and  retiring,  it  was  pretty  certain  they 


14  A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVKKY 

would  never  take  the  initiative.  Were  they  hus- 
band and  wife?  Hardly.  The  lady  looked  a 
little  older  than  her  companion.  She  had  a  sweet, 
tranquil  face ;  and  yet,  for  all  its  tranquillity,  one 
read  there  the  lines  of  suffering  and  sorrow.  Her 
abundant  brown  hair  was  smoothly  parted  over  a 
brow  that  was  too  large  for  beauty,  without  fringe 
or  curl,  to  mitigate  the  defect  in  proportion.  Her 
dress  was  of  Puritanic  simplicity.  She  wore  no 
bracelet,  or  ornament  of  any  description ;  but  on 
her  delicate  small  hand  was  a  wedding-ring. 

Her  companion,  without  being  ill-built,  had  the 
sort  of  figure  which  looks  as  if  he  had  never  been 
trained  to  athletics,  and  is  unused  to  active  exer- 
cise. His  hands  and  feet  were  almost  too  small  for 
his  height.  His  chest  was  contracted  ;  and  he  had 
a  cough  which,  without  being  constant,  made  itself 
heard  now  and  again.  His  smile  was  a  very  pleas- 
ant one,  lighting  up  the  entire  face,  as  some  smiles 
seem  incapable  of  doing  ;  and  his  rare  laugh  was 
merry  as  a  boy's.  He  wore  his  clothes  badly,  and 
the  clothes  themselves  were  ill-made :  facts  which 
disqualified  him  in  Sir  Mordaunt  Ballinger's  esti- 
mation, but  hardly  affected  his  sister.  What  did 
affect  her  was  the  curiously  intense,  powerful 
young  face  which  rose,  beardless,  above  the  loose- 
tied  neck-cloth.  It  was  too  thin  and  colorless  for 
manly  beauty,  though  the  lines  were  fine,  and  the 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  15 

eyes  of  extraordinary  depth.  His  voice,  like  his 
companion's,  was  low,  and,  except  by  certain  ex- 
pressions and  the  pronunciation  of  certain  words, 
it  would  not  have  been  apparent  that  he  was 
American. 

On  the  lady's  right  sat  Mr.  Ruggs,  from  Chicago, 
who  had  been  to  Europe  to  enlist  sympathy  for  the 
World's  Fair,  and  who  held  forth  to  Lady  Clydes- 
dale, opposite  him,  as  to  the  wonders  of  the  show, 
"which  I  tell  you,  ma'am,  will  knock  the  Paris 
Exhibition  into  a  cocked  hat  !"  His  opulence 
and  prodigality  of  illustration  seemed  a  little  op- 
pressive to  the  gentlewoman  beside  him.  Her 
companion  had  Miss  Lobb  on  his  left.  That 
highly  cultured  lady  tackled  him  at  once  upon 
the  subject  of  undeveloped  cosmic  forces.  Grace 
asked  herself  whether  he  would  not  be  as  glad  to 
escape  from  the  cosmic  forces  as  she  would  be  to 
forego  the  rapid  vehemence  of  the  young  man 
from  New  York.  And  so,  resolved  that  the  stream 
of  white  cloth  should  divide  her  no  longer  from 
her  opposite  neighbors,  she  startled  them  with 
this  original  observation,  addressed  indifferently 
to  both  : 

"  How  hungry  being  at  sea  makes  one  !" 
The  lady  responded  with  a  fluttering  smile,  "  I 
have  not  experienced  it  as  yet.     I  hope  my  son 
will  do  so  soon.     He  has  been  sick." 


16  A  VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY 

Her  son  ?  Grace  was  astonished.  And  sick  ? 
Why,  the  twenty-four  hours  that  had  passed  since 
leaving  Liverpool  had  been  absolutely  calm.  In 
her  expressive  countenance  the  young  man  read 
possibly  what  was  passing  in  her  mind. 

"  You  would  say  '  ill,' "  he  observed,  with  a 
smile.  "  We  use  the  word  in  the  old  Scriptural 
sense. " 

"Yes,"  said  his  mother,  '"sick  unto  death.' 
He  really  was  that.  We  have  been  quite  a  time 
in  Europe,  in  consequence." 

"  Where  were  you  ?"  asked  Grace.  "At  some 
Baths  ?" 

"  Homburg  is  the  only  Bath  worth  going  to," 
struck  in  Mr.  Gunning.  "  Lots  going  on  there,  all 
the  time." 

"  Horrid  place.  I  hate  it,"  said  Miss  Ballinger. 
Then,  looking  at  her  opposite  neighbor,  she  con- 
tinued, "  I  hope  you  were  at  a  nice  place.  How 
long  were  you  in  Europe  ?" 

"Four  months.  I  was  sent  right  off  to  Aix-la- 
Chapelle,  after  rheumatic  fever,  and  then  on  to 
Spa.  We  had  very  little  time  to  travel,  but  we 
did  go  around  in  Belgium  and  Holland  for  three 
weeks." 

"  One  picks  up  awfully  sweet  delf  and  old  oak 
in  Holland,"  said  Mr.  Gunning. 

"  What !    You  saw  nothing  of  England,  then  ? 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  17 

And  this  is  your  first  visit  to  Europe  ?"  Miss 
Ballinger  looked  almost  indignant  as  she  asked 
this.  The  mother  answered,  quickly  : 

"  It  is  our  first  visit,  and  I  never  should  have 
come  but  for  my  son's  health.  I  should  dearly 
love  to  visit  the  cathedral  towns,  and  all  the  old  his- 
torical castles  in  England,  but  I  guess  I  never  shall." 

"Yes  you  will,"  said  her  son.  "I  mean  to  go 
next  fall,  and  to  take  you  with  me. . . .  My  mother 
has  lived  more  than  twenty-five  years  in  a  New 
England  village,  without  going  further  than  the 
sea-shore.  She  enjoys  travel,  but  fancies  she  can- 
not leave  home." 

"  When  one  has  gotten  a  house,  and  help,  it's 
difficult  to  go  right  away,  even  if  there  were  no 
other  reason,"  said  the  mother,  shaking  her  head. 
"But  you  can  go.  There's  no  call  for  you  to 
spend  your  vacation  at  home." 

"If  one  doesn't  go  to  Em-ope,"  said  Gunning, 
"  the  only  place  is  Newport.  You  must  come  to 
Newport,  Miss  Ballinger — you  really  must.  It's 
yachting,  dancing,  or  picnics  all  the  time.  You 
should  see  how  our  swells  live  there.  Why,  Cowes 
isn't  in  it — it  isn't  really.  Our  prominent  cottagers 
give  such  entertainments  !  Why,  there  was  one 
luncheon  party  last  year  that  cost — " 

"Don't  tell  me,  Mr.  Gunning.     It  makes  me 
feel  that  I  am  a  pauper." 
2 


18  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

Miss  Lobb  here  interposed  to  observe  that  it 
was  only  in  effete  old  countries  that  pauperism 
was  tolerated.  She  looked  through  her  double 
glasses  defiantly  at  Grace  as  she  added,  "  With 
us  it  is  exterminated." 

Sir  Mordaunt  Ballinger's  face  was  convulsed 
with  suppressed  laughter,  as  he  touched  his  sis- 
ter's elbow  at  this  moment.  "  Listen  to  Mr. 
Ruggs's  account  of  Chicago.  If  it  doesn't  make 
you  wish  to  go  there  !  Will  you  tell  my  sister 
what  you  were  saying  about  your  city  ?" 

"  I  tell  you,  miss,"  said  the  fat  little  man,  turn- 
ing a  pair  of  twinkling  eyes  on  Grace,  and  with 
an  expression  so  shrewd  and  humorous  that  she 
felt  uncertain  how  far  he  was  in  earnest,  how  far 
endeavoring  to  impose  on  her  credulity — "I  tell 
you,  miss,  we  are  going  to  have  the  finest  city  in 
the  whole  creation.     Don't  you  make  a  mistake. 
There  will  be  nothing  to  touch  it,  until  the  New 
Jerusalem  is  built.     Why,  already  it  takes  more 
than  two  hours  to  drive  from  one  end  of  it  to  the 
other !     We've  got  a  street  twelve  miles  long. 
We've  got  a  tonsorial  saloon  paved  with  dollar- 
pieces,  and  a  hotel  of  alabaster  and  gold.     I  tell 
you,  miss,  there  is  nothing  to  touch  it  in  Europe  !" 
"  And  about  the  World's  Fair,  Mr.  Ruggs  ?  tell 
us  what  you  propose  doing  ?"  asked  Sir  Mordaunt. 
"  Well,  sir,  we  propose  bringing  over  a  few  of 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  19 

your  European  princes,  and  having  them  on  show. 
We  are  in  treaty  for  the  Duke  of  Braganza,  as 
direct  descendant  of  Columbus,  whose  bones  we 
feel  like  having — if  we  can — but,  odd  to  say,  they 
make  some  difficulties.  The  bones  and  the  de- 
scendants will  come  right  over  in  galleons  made 
on  the  model  of  those  that  brought  Columbus. 
We  also  propose  to  bring  over  the  Sphinx — " 

"  What !  From  Egypt  ?"  Miss  Ballinger 
laughed  outright.  "  Poor  Sphinx  !  It  will  feel 
very  strange  away  from  its  native  desert." 

"  Oh,  we'll  blow  a  lot  of  sand  up  right  around 
it.  We've  got  plenty  on  the  shore  of  our  lake. 
That's  for  the  classical  advertisement.  Then 
for  the  Scriptural  one.  I  did  think  of  having 
Pharaoh  in  the  Red  Sea,  and  dividing  the  water 
by  hydraulic  pressure ;  but  making  the  waves 
red  might  create  a  sort  of  a — feeling — the  citi- 
zens might  feel  kinder  uncomfortable.  There's 
no  reason  against  the  Garden  of  Eden — plenty  of 
apple-trees,  and  snakes  are  common — there's  only 
a  little  difficulty  about  Adam  and  Eve.  However, 
I've  no  doubt  we  shall  hit  on  something.  People 
do  like  something  Scriptural.  There's  Ammer- 
gau,  now  !  That  would  do  fust-rate,  only  those 
peasants  wouldn't  come." 

"But  you're  going  to  have  a  bigger  theatre 
than  the  world  has  ever  seen,  I  suppose  ?" 


20  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  We  have  one,  sir.  And  as  to  acting,  have  you 
seen  our  Clara  Morris  ?  I  tell  you,  sir,  there  is 
nothing  in  creation  like  it !  Why,  when  she 
weeps  on  the  stage,  it  is  enough  to  make  an  iron 
dog  come  down  from  a  door-step  and  lick  her 
hand  !  Don't  talk  to  me  of  your  Bernhardts  and 
your  Ristor-eyes — not  but  what  we'll  have  them, 
too,  just  to  show  how  superior  the  reel  American 
article  is  !" 

"And  pictures?  Are  you  going  in  for  pict- 
ures ?" 

"  I  believe  you,  sir  !  Why,  the  pictures  at  the 
Paris  Exhibition '11  be  like  a  pack  of  playing- 
cards  compared  with  ours.  I  calculate  we'll  have 
the  biggest  picture  on  show  that  has  ever  been 
seen.  It's  forty-two  feet  long.  I've  concluded 
to  bid  half-price  for  it  when  our  show  is  over, 
and  to  present  it  to  the  city." 

Here  Lady  Clydesdale,  who  was  on  the  other 
side  of  Sir  Mordaunt,  struck  in  her  oar,  and  a 
powerful  one  it  was.  She  was  what  Mr.  Ruggs 
styled  "  a  fine  female,  but  fleshy,"  and  her  arro- 
gant assumption  of  humility  was  irritating  to 
others  besides  the  young  baronet ;  perhaps  to 
rone  more  than  to  Americans. 

"  I  am  sorry  to  hear  you  say,"  she  observed, 
quickly,  and  in  a  voice  like  a  trumpet,  "  that  you 
are  going  to  imitate  the  follies  of  Europe,  in  at- 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  21 

tachiug  any  importance  or  giving  any  prominence 
to  princes.  It  is  degrading  to  distinguish  one  in- 
dividual above  another,  except  for  personal  merit." 

"  Yours  and  mine  are  beyond  question,  Lady 
Clydesdale,"  laughed  Ballinger,  parenthetically. 
It  was  impertinent ;  but  he  was  nettled.  She 
turned  and  rent  him. 

"  My  principles  and  practice  are  too  well  known 
at  home  for  me  to  argue  with  you,  Sir  Mordaunt. 
I  would  resign  my  coronet  to-morrow.  I  would 
abolish  all  class  distinctions.  I  would  herd  with 
the  humblest,  I  would  dine  with  my  servants,  and 
give  them  all  the  luxuries  I  enjoy  myself — the 
piano,  horses,  carriages — they  should  live  as  I  do, 
did  the  prejudice  of  society  permit  it.  I  expect- 
ed to  find  it  more  enlightened  in  America  than  in 
England.  I  thought  there  was  one  country,  at  least, 
where  all  men  were  equal !  I  am  disappointed." 

What  Mr.  Ruggs's  rejoinder  was,  for  he  did 
rejoin,  and  how  the  battle  was  fought,  Miss  Bal- 
linger never  heard  ;  for  Gunning,  who  had  been 
listening  to  her  ladyship's  onslaught  in  amaze- 
ment, here  said  in  an  undertone  : 

"  Is  she  mad  ?  Fancied  we  were  all  equal ! 
Why,  we  are  just  as  exclusive  as  ever  we  can  be 
in  New  York.  The  Four  Hundred  shut  their 
doors  against  every  one  who  hasn't  money,  I  can 
tell  you." 


22  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  Ah  !     Brains  count  for  nothing,  I  suppose  ? 

"Nothing  out  of  Wall  Street.  A  man  must 
work,  of  course,  to  make  his  pile — if  he  doesn't 
inherit  one.  I  was  an  only  child.  Lucky,  wasn't 
I  ?  Never  had  to  work." 

"  Those  who  have  to  work  are  the  lucky  ones, 
in  my  opinion." 

He  looked  surprised,  and  shook  his  head. 

"Couldn't  have  my  yacht  or  my  team  — 
couldn't  go  off  to  shoot  in  the  Rockies — couldn't 
do  lots  of  things,  if  I  had  to  work.  Then,  getting 
up  early  every  morning.  .  .  .  Oh !  it  wouldn't  suit 
me."  After  a  minute's  pause  he  went  on :  "  You'll 
let  me  drive  you  in  my  team,  one  day  ?  I'll  get 
up  a  luncheon-party  for  you  somewhere  in  the 
country.  We'll  have  a  band,  and  dance  after- 
wards. We'll  have  a  rare,  good  time." 

"  I  shall  do  whatever  my  brother  likes  in  New 
York.  You  must  ask  him.  I  shall  have  abso- 
lutely no  will  of  my  own.  Will  you  give  me 
those  biscuits  ?  .  .  .  Thank  you." 

"  We  call  them  crackers.  About  your  brother, 
I'll  see  that  we  have  a  lot  of  bright  girls.  There's 
Miss  Planter.  She  is  a  belle  ;  she  will  just  suit 
him.  She  was  made  a  lot  of  in  London  last  sea- 
son, I  believe.  She  will  have  a  million  of  dollars. 
Not  bad,  eh  ?" 

"  Bad,  if  she  is  to  be  married  for  the  sake  of 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  23 

them.  It  is  fortunate  she  is  attractive.  I  am 
glad  that  I  have  only  enough  to  keep  body 
and  soul  alive.  No  one  will  marry  me  for  my 
money  !" 

"  Oh,  well,  it  won't  signify  to  you,  having  noth- 
ing— "  He  stopped  short  and  smiled  at  her. 
Then,  though  the  connection  of  ideas  was  not 
very  clear,  he  went  on  :  "I  say,  Miss  Ballinger, 
this  is  the  second  time  I  have  been  to  Europe, 
but  I've  never  seen  anything  of  English  society. 
I  -have  fooled  around  in  Paris  and  London  a  bit, 
but  I  have  a  mind  next  year  to  take  a  place  in  Eng- 
land, and  hunt.  Do  you  think  I  should  like  it? 
They  say  English  women  don't  take  to  American 
men.  Is  that  so  ?" 

"  We  know  so  few.  Most  of  you  are  too  ab- 
sorbed in  business  to  spend  much  time  with  us. 
But  your  women  are  very  popular.  My  brother 
says  they  are  so  much  easier  to  get  on  with  than 
his  own  countrywomen." 

"  That's  right  enough.  But  are  not  we  Amer- 
ican men  easy  to  get  on  with,  as  well  ?" 

"  Certainly — perhaps  too  easy,  sometimes.  But, 
having  got  on,  the  thing  is  to  remain  on.  I  have 
heard  it  complained  sometimes  that  Americans 
lose  ground  by  assurance.  If  you  come  to  Eng- 
land, I  dare  say  you  will  be  made  a  great  deal  of, 
because  you  are  a  rich  young  man.  But  if  you 


24  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

want  to  be  popular  with  any  one  besides  manoeu- 
vring mammas,  take  my  advice — never  talk  about 
your  money,  never  presume  upon  it,  in  any  way. 
The  nicest  people  resent  that.  ...  I  am  going  on 
deck  ;  it  is  so  hot  here." 

She  delivered  herself  of  this  little  homily  sim- 
ply, almost  laughingly,  and  rose,  leaving  the  young 
man  to  his  half-finished  luncheon.  The  mother 
opposite,  without  waiting  for  her  son,  upon  whom 
Miss  Lobb  had  once  again  fastened  her  fangs,  had 
risen  from  the  table,  and  Miss  Ballinger  followed 
and  joined  her  on  deck. 


CHAPTER   II 

"MAY  I  walk  up  and  down  with  you?" 

The  gentle  little  woman  smiled  her  assent. 

"  I  was  never  more  surprised  than  to  hear  you 
were  the  mother  of  the  young  man  opposite  me — 
you  look  like  his  eldest  sister." 

"  I  was  married  very  young." 

"  Is  he  your  only  child  ?" 

"  The  only  one  alive.  I  lost  two  younger. 
That  is  why  I — why  we  are  doubly  anxious  about 
him." 

"Your  husband  is  alive,  then  ?     What  is  he?" 

It  was  only  this  young  woman's  great  charm  of 
manner  which  prevented  her  curiosity  sometimes 
from  seeming  obtrusive.  But  there  was  such 
genuine  interest  in  the  look  of  her  clear,  truthful 
eyes  that  no  one,  least  of  all  the  gentle,  unsophis- 
ticated creature  she  addressed,  could  resent  it. 

"My  husband  is  a  minister  ;  our  name  is  Bar- 
ham.  We  live  in  a  very  quiet  village  in  New 
England,  and  seldom  leave  it.  Of  course,  I  should 
not  have  gone  abroad  with  Saul,  had  it  not  been 


26  A  VOYAGE   OF  DISCOVERY 

for  his  health.     But  my  husband  urged  it,  and  so 
I  went." 

"  And  you  are  glad  you  went,  I  am  sure.  As 
you  were  anxious  about  your  son,  it  must  have 
been  a  great  comfort  to  you  to  be  with  him.  Has 
he  always  been  delicate  ?" 

"  Well,  he  has  never  been  very  strong."  Here 
she  sighed.  "  We  feared  lung  trouble  at  one  time. 
Our  climate  is  rather  trying,  and  Saul  overworked 
himself." 

"  Was  he  at  Harvard  University  ?  I  am  sure 
he  is  very  clever." 

"  Yes,  he  is  very  clever.  When  he  left  Har- 
vard he  became  a  teacher.  Then  they  made  him 
a  professor  at  the  university  a  few  months  ago — 
a  great  compliment  to  so  young  a  man.  But 
whether  his  health  will  stand  it — "  Here  she 
sighed  again,  and  left  her  sentence  unfinished. 

"  But  he  is  going  now  to  return  to  his  work  ?" 

"Why,  certainly  !  He  would  not  give  that  up 
for  the  world.  He  was  offered  a  fine  salary  to 
remain  in  Europe  and  travel  with  two  boys.  It 
would  have  been  a  grand  thing  for  his  health, 
and  he  would  have  made  more  money  than  he  can 
do  at  home,  but  he  would  not  accept  it.  He  has 
a  deal  of  ambition,  you  see  ;  and  there's — there's 
something  else.  He  is  so  fond  of  me,  he  couldn't 
bear  to  leave  me,  and  go  right  away.  Here  he 


A   VOYAGE    OP    DISCOVERY  27 

comes  ;  don't  say  anything  to  him  about  his 
health,  Miss—" 

"Miss  Ballinger.  No,  I  will  not.  I  am  so 
much  obliged  to  you  for  telling  me  so  much  about 
yourselves.  .  .  .  Mr.  Barham,  I  am  going  to  in- 
troduce myself  formally  to  you.  Your  mother 
and  I  have  been  making  friends:  It  is  like  be- 
ing at  a  masquerade  not  knowing  who  and  what 
people  are  ;  and  it  saves  so  much  idle  speculation 
and  back-stair  ferreting-out  to  label  one's  self  at 
once.  I  am  Miss  Ballinger,  spinster,  aged  twenty- 
five,  travelling  with  her  brother,  Sir  Mordaunt 
Ballinger,  Baronet  and  member  of  Parliament. 
Any  discreet  question  you  like  to  ask  I  am  pre- 
pared to  answer ;  for  I  have  a  mania  for  asking 
questions  myself,  as  your  mother  knows  by  this 
time  ;  and  I  don't  want  any  unfair  advantage." 

The  young  man  looked  at  her  fixedly  for  a 
moment,  and  then  laughed.  He  had  never  met 
any  one  like  this  young  lady.  Was  she  a  specimen 
of  her  country  ?  He  knew  so  few  of  them. 

"All  the  questions  I  shall  ask  will  be  mental 
ones,  which  you  will  answer,  whether  you  Kke  it 
or  not,"  he  said.  "  I  find  those  replies,  uncon- 
sciously given,  so  much  more  satisfying  than  any 
others.  Little  mother,  you  look  tired  ;  lie  down 
here.  Perhaps  Miss  Ballinger  will  continue  her 
quarter-deck  walk  with  me." 


28  A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY 

He  tucked  up  the  "little  mother"  on  a  deck- 
chair,  with  a  plaid  round  her  legs  ;  then  turned, 
and  resumed  his  walk  with  Miss  Ballinger.  She 
began  at  once  : 

"  What  a  charming  face  Mrs.  Barham  has  !  She 
reminds  me  of  Scheffer's  picture  of  the  mother  of 
St.  Augustine— only  younger." 

"Yes.  It  is  a  pity  I  am  not  more  like  him. 
The  only  point  of  resemblance  that  I  can  re- 
call is,  that  whenever  I  pray  to  be  made  good, 
I  add,  like  Augustine  — '  but  not  to  day,  O 
Lord !' " 

She  turned  her  bright,  penetrating  glance  full 
upon  him,  half  laughing,  half  serious. 

"  Are  you  one  of  the  men  who  are  anxious  to 
be  thought  very  wicked  ?  I  should  not  have 
expected  that.  But  there  I  am,  questioning 
again !  Well,  never  mind.  Strong  characters 
are  rarely  saints  in  youth,  I  suppose ;  though  I 
don't  know  why  they  shouldn't  be,  if  they  are 
only  strong  enough." 

"Perhaps  I  am  not  strong  at  all." 

"  Yes,  you  are.  Your  mouth  and  chin  told  me 
that,  before  you  spoke." 

"You  are  a  physiognomist.  How  about  the 
eyes?  Do  you  attach  any  importance  to  them  ? — 
those  '  windows  of  the  soul  ?' " 

"  He  does  not  expect  me  to  say  that  his  win- 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  29 

dows  are  luminous  ones,  magnificently  draped, 
does  he  ?  If  he  does,  he  shall  be  disappointed," 
thought  Grace.  What  she  said  was  : 

"  Eyes  are  the  most  deceptive  feature — there 
is  no  trusting  them.  I  have  grown  quite  tired  of 
fine  eyes." 

The  young  American  smiled  in  a  peculiar  man- 
ner. "I  am  beginning  my  mental  questions." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?" 

"  I  am  wondering  whether  you  yourself  are  al- 
ways perfectly  truthful." 

She  flushed,  and  looked  annoyed.  "  You  are 
quite  justified.  Of  course,  I  was  not  speaking  the 
exact  truth — though  it  is  really  my  opinion  that 
eyes  do  not  denote  character." 

"  I  think  your  eyes  do — better  than  your  words, 
perhaps." 

"  As  how  ?" 

He  smiled  again.  "  Well,  that  brings  the  con- 
fession that  I  was  not  perfectly  truthful.  I  was 
not  wondering — I  never  doubted  that  you  were 
truthful  and  straightforward  generally  ;  though 
you  might  say  things  that  were  not  quite  so,  some 
times." 

She  burst  out  laughing. 

"  Upon  my  word,  Mr.  Barham !  That  is  a 
pretty  character,  and,  unfortunately,  it  is  quite 
true.  It  is  lucky  I  am  not  like  Mrs.  Van  Winkle 


30  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

— have  you  spoken  to  Mrs.  Van  Winkle  ?  she  is 
most  amusing— who  told  me  she  loved  flattery,  in 
every  form  ;  there  was  no  amount  of  it  she  could 
not  swallow !  Now,  I  like  it,  of  course— what 
woman  doesn't !  But  it  must  be  in  homoeopathic 
doses.  You  have  administered  an  infinitesimal 
grain  of  it  wrapped  up  in  a  very  wholesome  bitter. 
I  shall  take  care  what  I  say  to  you  in  future." 

"Pray,  don't.  That  would  be  punishing  my 
impertinence  too  severely.  Yes,  Mrs.  Van  Winkle 
spoke  to  me  this  morning,  hearing  I  was  from 
Harvard.  She  said  she  felt  that  those  who; 
were  fellow-workers  in  one  field  should  inter- 
change thoughts.  I  suppose  I  stared,  for  she 
hastened  to  inform  me  that  she  had  written  a 
book  which  was  pronounced  to  be  a  work  of 
genius." 

"Her  naivete  is  quite  delightful !" 

"  Presently  she  went  on  to  tell  me  that  a  paint- 
er had  begged  her  to  sit  to  him  as  Clio,  when  she 
was  in  Rome,  and  that  her  hands  and  feet  had 
been  modelled  by  a  sculptor  in  Paris.  I  suppose 
that  was  naive." 

"  Certainly  it  was.  Most  of  us  would  have  gone 
a  roundabout  way  to  convey  the  same  informa- 
tion. We  are  all  vain.  My  vanity  is  fed  by  the 
belief  that  people  will  find  out  what  a  nice  person 
I  am,  without  my  giving  a  sort  of  auctioneer's 


A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY  31 

inventory  of  my  merits,  as  that  dear  innocent 
Mrs.  Van  Winkle  does." 

"  Innocent  ?  Well !  .  .  .  She  told  me  her  hus- 
band would  be  the  next  minister  to  England,  and 
that  she  would  not  return  there  till  then,  as  she 
did  not  choose  to  go  about,  having  to  explain  her- 
self. I  thought — with  the  Paris  sculptor  and  the 
modelling — that  a  foot-note  might  be  explanation 
enough.  But  I  have  not  an  idea  what  she  meant." 

"  She  meant  that  the  Van  Winkles  are  not  to 
be  herded  with  common  travelling  Americans." 

"I  have  been  a  common  travelling  American 
myself  for  the  last  three  months." 

"  And  I  dare  say  you  had  sometimes  to  explain 
yourself." 

"Never.  I  know  too  well  the  way  in  which 
my  pushing  countrymen  are  spoken  of,  to  seek 
any  one.  Those  who  have  sought  me  have  had 
to  do  so  without  any  '  explanation.' " 

"  Proud  as  Lucifer,"  thought  Grace.  "  Clearly 
not  the  stuff  of  which  saints  are  made."  Then 
aloud,  "  How  did  you  like  Europe  ?" 

"  Very  much,  for  a  time — for  many  times,  I 
might  say.  I  should  like  to  travel  there  yearly. 
I  hope  it  may  be  possible  for  me  to  do  so.  But  I 
would  not  live  out  of  my  own  country." 

"  Because  you  prefer  it  as  a  residence — or  from 
a  sense  of  duty  ?" 


32  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

He  demurred.  "  The  associations  of  early  life 
have  a  strong  hold  on  one,  and  there  are  special 
reasons  in  my  case  why—  Here  he  broke  off  ; 
then  began  anew:  "Of  course,  there  are  things  I 
dislike,  things  I  deplore,  in  my  own  country  ;  but 
she  has  a  great  future  before  her,  and  it  behooves 
every  American  to  do  his  best  to  advance  that 
future  ;  so  that  the  generation  that  follows  may 
be  richer  than  the  present,  iu  wisdom  and  in 
worth." 

"  Not  only  in  wealth  ?" 

"You  have  been  told  that  is  the  only  god  we 
worship?  Well,  that  is  true,  perhaps,  of  the  ma- 
jority—  not  of  all.  And  this  god,  when  he  has 
been  won  by  the  self-made  man,  is  generally  a 
very  munificent  god  with  us.  Where  will  you 
find  colleges,  hospitals,  libraries,  galleries,  the 
gift  of  private  individuals,  to  the  same  extent  as 
with  xis  ?  Every  city  has  its  record  of  them — a 
record  to  be  proud  of." 

"I  see  I  shall  have  to  strike  a  balance  in  my 
judgment  between  you  and  Mr.  Ferrars.  He  is 
pessimist,  and  you  are  optimist,  as  regards  your 
country." 

"  I  do  not  know  Mr.  Ferrars,"  said  the  young 
man,  dryly.  "  But  it  is  a  cheap  way  of  showing 
your  superiority,  to  decry  your  own  nation  and 
point  out  all  its  shortcomings." 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  33 

"  There  is  such  a  thing  as  exaggerated  pa- 
triotism that  will  not  admit  shortcomings.  As 
a  nation,  you  are  so  over-sensitive  to  criticism. 
Why,  you  will  not  allow  one  of  your  own  best 
writers  to  represent  certain  types,  to  laugh  at 
certain  follies,  without  crying  out  that  he  is  un- 
patriotic !  The  whole  stock  in  trade  of  Dickens 
and  Thackeray  was  laughing  at  our  shams  and 
vulgarities,  and  who  ever  thought  of  bringing 
such  a  charge  against  them?" 

"  We  are  over-sensitive,  but  then  we  are  very 
young,  remember." 

Here  a  slight  accident  interrupted  their  prog- 
ress. Mrs.  Courtly  was  emerging  from  the  main 
gangway  just  as  Miss  Ballinger  and  her  compan- 
ion crossed  it,  and  a  lurch  of  the  vessel,  for  the 
wind  had  been  gradually  rising  and  the  sea  was 
no  longer  perfectly  smooth,  sent  the  unprepared 
lady,  adroit  and  nimble  as  she  was,  into  the  young 
man's  arms.  She  was  a  small,  slight  woman,  ex- 
quisitely built  and  proportioned,  no  longer  in  her 
first  youth,  with  a  pale  face  lit  by  a  wonderful 
smile,  which  recalled  to  Grace  Leonardo  da  Vin- 
ci's enigmatical  "Joconde." 

Apologies  on  both  sides,  with  a  good  deal  of 

laughing  on  the   lady's   part,  followed.      Grace 

came  forward,  and  a  few  words  were  exchanged, 

during  which  Barham  took  off  his  hat  and  walked 

3 


34  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

away,  to  Miss  Ballinger's  surprise  —  perhaps,  it 
may  be  said,  to  her  annoyance. 

"  Who  is  your  friend  whom  I  so  unceremoni- 
ously embraced?"  asked  Mrs.  Courtly,  in  her  low, 
musical  voice.  "*Why  is  he  gone  away  ?  I  am 
so  sorry  to  have  interrupted  your  walk." 

"  If  he  had  wished,  I  suppose,  he  would  have 
stayed.  He  is  a  professor  from  Harvard  Univer- 
sity ;  his  name  is  Barham." 

"  Really  ?  I  never  heard  of  him,  and  I  have  so 
many  friends  at  Harvard.  My  home  in  Massa- 
chusetts is  not  so  very  far  distant.  He  is  very 
good-looking  ;  is  he  clever  ?" 

"  Certainly ;  but  not  much  of  a  society  man. 
He  suffers  from  a  form  of  shyness  which  I  sup- 
pose is  not  common  in  the  States — a  dread  of  be- 
ing thought  forward,  pushing.  I  am  sure  that  is 
why  he  beat  a  retreat." 

"  How  very  singular  !  It  was  I  who  was  for- 
ward and  pushing  !"  Here-  she  laughed  softty. 
"  You  must  present  him  formally  to  me ;  I  shall 
be  delighted  to  make  his  acquaintance ;  I  love  to 
gather  round  me  all  that  is  best  worth  knowing. 
By  the  way,  your  brother  has  been  promising  to 
bring  you  to  stay  with  me.  I  am  within  easy 
reach  of  Boston.  I  hope  you  won't  object." 

"  You  are  very  good ;  it  sounds  delightful.  I 
have  always  looked  forward  to  seeing  Boston,  and 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  35 

I  hope  my  brother  will  go  there.    I  have  heard 
there  is  nothing  like  Boston  society." 

"  You  must  not  expect  the  magnificence  of  New 
York.  We  New-Englanders  live  much  more  sim- 
ply; but  there  is  a  pleasant  mixture  of  the  grave 
and  the  gay.  I  am  reproached  with  being  too  gay 
— too  frivolous  for  my  years.  But  my  principle 
is  to  enjoy  everything  as  long  as  I  can,  to  live  and 
to  let  live.  And  so  I  get  a  great  deal  of  pleasure 
out  of  existence." 

She  said  this  in  a  low,  cooing  voice  that  was 
wonderfully  persuasive. 

"And  confer  a  great  deal,"  rejoined  Grace. 
"Most  people  get  so  soon  biases,  it  is  refreshing 
to  find  any  one  who  retains  youthfulness  of  spirit 
into  middle  age.  But,  then,  you  have  a  wonder- 
ful variety  of  interests  in  life,  I  am  told." 

"Oh,  yes;  I  care  for  a  great  many  things,  I  am 
glad  to  say — books,  and  pictures,  and  people.  If 
I  cannot  get  some  excitement  out  of  one,  I  do  out 
of  another;  life  is  so  curious,  so  full  of  problems. 
Who  told  you  about  me  ?  If  you  listen  to  all  you 
hear—" 

"  It  was  Mr.  Ferrars  —  evidently  a  very  true 
friend — who  spoke  of  you." 

"  Oh!  poor  Quintin  Ferrars!  Yes,  he  is  a  good 
friend." 

"  Why  do  you  say  '  poor '  ?  " 


36  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  Because  he  has  not  had  a  happy  life." 

"Partly  his  own  fault,  I  should  think.  He 
strikes  me  as  not  having  a  happy  temperament." 

"Is  that  his  own  fault?"  asked  Mrs.  Courtly, 
smiling.  "  He  has  not  a  happy  temperament,  it. 
is  true.  I  have  always  told  him  that  he  does  not 
extract  the  enjoyment  he  might  out  of  life  — 
though  it  struck  me  he  was  doing  so  successfully 
this  morning !  But,  poor  fellow  !  he  has  been 
heavily  handicapped ;  circumstances  have  been 
against  him,  they  have  embittered  everything." 

Grace  was  dying  to  ask  what  those  circum- 
stances were,  but  something  restrained  her.  Her 
acquaintance  with  Mrs.  Courtly  was  but  slight ; 
it  would  hardly  be  seemly  for  Grace  to  press  for 
information  about  Mrs.  Courtly 's  friend  which 
that  lady  thought  fit  to  conceal.  Presently  Mrs. 
Courtly  said, 

"  Will  you  come  and  have  tea  in  my  cabin  at 
five  o'clock  ?  I  have  a  deck  cabin ;  it  can  hold 
half  a  dozen  people — Mrs.  Van  Winkle,  and  your 
brother,  and  Quintin  Ferrars,  and  one  other  man; 
shall  I  ask  Jem  Gunning  ?" 

"  Not  for  me,  please ;  I  have  enough  of  him  at 
three  meals  every  day.  Do  you  like  him  ?" 

"  Why,  yes.  Jem  is  not  a  bad  boy  in  his  way. 
A  clever  woman  would  twist  Jem  round  her  finger, 
and  might  make  him  very  different  to  what  he  is." 


A    VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY  37 

"  What  he  is,  is  not  pleasing  to  me  at  present. 
Perhaps  if  I  meet  him  hereafter,  when  he  has  been 
duly  twisted  by  the  clever  woman,  I  may  appre- 
ciate him  more." 

"  How  sarcastic  you  are  !"  purred  Mrs.  Courtly, 
showing  her  white  teeth  ;  "  all  our  young  men 
will  be  quite  afraid  of  you,  Miss  Ballinger." 

"  I  am  not  sarcastic — far  from  it,"  said  Grace, 
laughing.  "  Only  I  know  what  I  like  and  what  I 
don't," 

"  You  prefer  your  friend,  the  Harvard  profess- 
or?" She  smiled  with  a  malicious  twinkle  in  her 
hazel  eyes.  "  Well,  will  you  invite  him  ?  Bring 
him  with  you." 

Grace  was  a  little  taken  aback.  "  I — I  can't 
bring  him.  I  will  deliver  your  message  ...  if  I 
see  him.  .  .  .  But  he  is  no  friend  of  mine.  I 
never  spoke  to  him  till  half  an  hour  ago." 

After  a  few  more  words  interchanged,  the  two 
ladies  separated.  Later  in  the  afternoon,  Grace 
found  Mr.  Barham,  seated  by  his  mother,  reading, 
in  the  upper  deck  cabin.  It  had  by  this  time  be- 
come rough  and  cold,  and  only  the  very  hardy 
were  still  pacing  the  deck. 

"  I  have  a  message  from  Mrs.  Courtly  (the  lady 
who  would  have  fallen  but  for  you  to-day).  She 
wishes  to  make  your  acquaintance,  Mr.  Barham, 
and  asks  if  you  will  come  and  have  tea  in  her 


38  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

cabin   at  five   o'clock.    My  brother   and  I   are 
going." 

The  young  man  had  laid  down  his  book,  and 
had  risen.  He  looked  much  surprised. 

"  What  can  Mrs.  Courtly  want  to  know  me  for? 
I  am  not  a  society  man,  and  I  cannot  do  anything 
to  amuse  her.  .  .  .  But  ...  of  course  ...  if  ... 
you  are  quite  sure — " 

"  I  should  not  transmit  such  a  message  if  I  were 
not  quite  sure.  You  will  do  as  you  please  about 
accepting  the  invitation."  Then,  turning  abrupt- 
ly to  Mrs.  Barham,  "  Can  you  recommend  to  me 
a  thoroughly  representative  American  book — I 
mean  representative  of  real  American  life,  not 
from  the  satirical  or  humorist  point  of  view  ?  I 
see  there  is  a  capital  library  here." 

"Our  New  England  life  is  very  well  depicted 
in  Mary  Wilkins's  tales,  and  also  in  Sarah  Orne 
Jewett's.  They  are  truthful  pictures  of  our  quiet 
homes,  our  quiet  lives,  removed  from  the  turmoil 
of  the  great  cities.  But  perhaps  you  might  find 
them  dull." 

"  I  have  read  them,  and  thought  them  charm- 
ing. Spinsterhood  is  great,  and  Miss  Wilkins  is 
its  prophet.  But  I  want  to  know  about  some- 
thing besides  those  dear  old  women.  Miss  Jewett, 
also,  charming  as  she  is,  is  circumscribed.  I  want 
something  wider  in  range.  I  was  given  '  On  Both 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  39 

Sides'  the  other  day.  It  amused  me,  but  as  a 
caricature." 

"  You  mean  that  the  English  are  caricatured — 
not  the  American,"  said  Saul  Barbara,  with  a 
smile. 

"  Yes,  I  do.  No  woman  in  society  ever  said 
the  outrageously  vulgar  things  Mrs.  Sykes  is  made 
to  say.  She  may  think  them — she  may  even  act 
them — she  could  not  say  them.  It  strikes  a  false 
note.  Then  there  is  a  beautiful  young  man,  sup- 
posed to  be  a  typical  young  man  of  society,  who 
tells  a  long  story  in  which  he  repeats  over  and 
over  again, '  I  says  to  him.'  Why  !  no  one  above 
a  stable-boy  ever  used  such  a  form  of  speech." 

"  Is  it  quite  possible  for  one  nation  to  judge 
another  fairly  ?"  asked  Mrs.  Barbara,  gently. 

"  I  hope  so.  Why  not  ?  I  am  sure  I  have 
no  anti-American  prejudices.  But  as  we  are  so 
closely  bound  together  by  language  and  origin,  it 
is  more  difficult  for  us  not  to  look  at  differences 
between  us  from  an  English  standpoint,  than  it  is 
when  we  are  discussing  any  European  nation. 
And  no  doubt  it  is  the  same  with  you,  if  you 
confess  it." 

"I  do  confess  it,"  said  the  young  man. 

Mrs.  Barham  murmured  something  about  there 
being  "  quite  a  number  of  persons  in  America  who 
imitate  everything  English  now." 


40  A   VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY 

Saul  laughed. 

"  Why,  we  have  a  cousin  who  is  so  anxious  to 
be  taken  for  an  Englishman  that  we  can  scarcely 
understand  what  he  says,  he  swallows  his  words 
so." 

After  which  he  recommended  two  books  to 
Grace,  one  of  which  she  found  on  the  shelves 
disengaged,  and  departed  with  it. 


CHAPTER  HI 

THE  small  gathering  in  Mrs.  Courtly 's  cabin  at 
five  o'clock,  which  looked  at  first  as  if  it  would  be 
what  Mordaunt  Ballinger  called  "  frosty,"  ended, 
by  reason  of  the  hostess's  tact  and  charm  of  man- 
ner, in  assimilating  fairly  well.  The  men  were  of 
course  the  difficult  ingredients  to  "  mix  ;"  they 
always  are  when  not  homogeneous.  Ballinger 
felt,  and  rightly,  that  he  and  Ferrars  had  not 
much  in  common ;  it  would  require  a  shipwreck 
to  make  them  intimate.  Ferrars  probably  did  not 
trouble  his  head  about  the  young  baronet,  except 
as  being  the  brother  of  the  most  delightful  girl  he 
thought  he  had  ever  met.  Saul  Barham  was  an 
unknown  quantity  to  both  men.  To  Ballinger  he 
was  "  a  young  Yankee,  not  bad-looking,  but  a 
willowy  sort  of  chap,  got  up  in  a  reach-me-down, 
and  wants  his  hair  cut  awfully."  Ferrars  regarded 
his  young  countryman  superciliously,  as  he  did 
most  things  at  first.  And  the  young  Harvard 
professor  showed  no  keen  desire  to  conciliate 
either  of  the  men  whom  he  now  spoke  to  for  the 


42  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

first  time.  Mrs.  Van  Winkle  displayed  an  evi- 
dent intention  of  securing  Sir  Mordaunt  Ballin- 
ger's  undivided  attention,  by  inviting  him  to  share 
a  portmanteau  with  her,  the  seats  in  the  cabin  be- 
ing few.  But  it  was  not  to  indulge  in  tetes-a-tetes 
that  Mrs.  Courtly  had  brought  her  friends  to- 
gether ;  they  could  do  that  on  deck.  With  the 
pouring  out  of  the  Russian  tea,  and  the  diffusion 
of  some  wonderful  cakes,  produced  from  a  tin, 
she  contrived  adroitly  to  break  up  the  duets,  for 
Ferrars  was  talking  art  in  a  low  voice  to  Miss 
Ballinger,  and  she  herself  had  been  drawing  out 
the  young  professor.  She  felt  that  the  conversa- 
tion ought  now  to  become  general. 

"  You  must  come  and  see  me  when  you  are  back 
in  Cambridge,"  she  had  been  saying  to  Barham, 
as  she  made  tea.  "I  am  quite  an  easy  distance 
by  rail  from  there,  and  I  want  you  to  look  over  my 
books.  I  am  devoted  to  books  .  .  .  not  that  I  am 
a  great  scholar — far  from  it.  Do  you  read  Italian  ? 
Yes  !  I  am  so  glad.  Then,  with  your  knowledge 
of  Latin,  you  will  help  me  to  decipher  some  old 
provincial  poems  which  I  picked  up  at  Quar- 
itch's  the  other  day,  and  of  which  I  believe 
there  are  very  few  copies  extant.  I  have  some 
Elzevirs,  too,  that  may  interest  you,  and  several 
first  editions.  Talking  of  first  editions,  dear  Mrs. 
Van  Winkle,  is  it  true  that  the  whole  of  the  first 


A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY  43 

edition  of  your  'Phryne'  is  sold  out?  Have  you 
read  it,  Sir  Mordaunt?  Of  course  you  have, 
Quintin  !" 

The  men  were  spared  replying  by  the  fair  au- 
thoress, a  decorative  woman,  with  lively  eyes  and 
a  very  elaborate  pink  tea-gown. 

"  The  demand  for  my  book  has  been  very  great," 
she  said,  with  a  sweet  smile,  "  but  I  know  nothing 
of  the  details.  I  have  had  applications  from  all 
the  chief  magazines  begging  me  to  write  for 
them,  and  I  suppose  I  must  do  so.  Of  course  my 
name  has  something  to  do  with  the  success.  Peo- 
ple know  that,  as  a  leader  of  society,  I  write  of 
what  I  understand." 

"Then  I  conclude  your  book  is  modern,  and 
has  nothing  to  do  with  the  famous  Greek  .  .  . 
beauty  ?"  inquired  Ferrars,  gravely. 

"Only  by  analogy,"  replied  Mrs.  Van  Winkle, 
sipping  her  tea  slowly.  "  The  whole  world  sits  in 
judgment  now  upon  any  woman  whose  beauty  or. 
whose  talent  makes  her  conspicuous.  If  she  has 
a  symmetrical  form  she  is  always  accused  of  be- 
ing too  decolletee" 

"You  forget  that  the  judges  forgave  Phryne." 

"  Oh  !  they  were  men.  Of  course  it  isn't  men's 
tongues  a  woman  has  to  fear  in  society.  They 
will  make  love  to  her,  and  praise  her  before  and 
behind  her  back,  if  she  amuses  them — and  en- 


44  A  VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERT 

courages  them  just  a  little.  It  is  the  wives  and 
the  mothers,  they  are  the  Areopagus  which  sits 
in  judgment  upon  the  woman  who  attracts  men." 

"You  must  have  suffered  severely  at  their 
hands,"  said  Sir  Mordaunt,  as  he  looked  up  into 
her  face  with  an  amused  expression. 

"  I  don't  know  about  suffered.  We  are  all  ar- 
raigned, we  married  women,  who  amuse  ourselves, 
and  who  have  inspired  perhaps  a  grande  passion — 
is  it  not  true,  Mrs.  Courtly?  But  they  are  a  lit- 
tle afraid  of  me.  When  a  gifted  woman  has  so- 
cial position  and  fortune  she  is  comparatively 
safe.  She  may  follow  her  own  course,  and  is 
only  accused  of  the  eccentricities  of  genius — or, 
at  worst,  of  being  a  little  mad.  I  know,"  she 
added,  complacently,  as  she  bit  a  cake  with  her 
small  white  teeth,  "  that  is  what  they  say  of  me." 

Mrs.  Courtly  felt  rather  uncomfortable  at  the 
turn  the  conversation  had  taken.  She  was  not 
(juite  sure  how  far  Miss  Ballinger  might  be 
amused  or  scared  by  Mrs.  Van  Winkle's  utter- 
ances. It  was  necessary  to  make  a  diversion  be- 
fore one  of  the  men  should  throw  back  the  ball ; 
so  she  said,  quickly, 

"  Isn't  it  Marcus  Aurelius — or  somebody — who 
says,  '  It  is  a  good  thing  to  be  abused '  ?  And, 
as  you  say,  your  position  is  so  well  established ! 
You  will  look  after  Miss  Ballinger  and  her  brother 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  45 

in  New  York,  I  know,  and  see  that  they  get  invi- 
tations to  anything  that  is  going  on.  How  long 
do  you  remain  there,  Miss  Ballinger  ?" 

"  You  must  ask  my  brother.  He  has  some  busi- 
ness in  New  York.  The  length  of  our  stay  de- 
pends entirely  on  him." 

"  I  shall  do  all  that  lies  in  my  power  to  make  it 
agreeable  to  you,"  said  Mrs.  Van  Winkle,  with 
cordiality.  Her  glance,  which  was  at  first  di- 
rected to  Grace,  revolved  slowly,  till  it  rested 
on  Sir  Mordaunt. 

"  I  am  glad  to  hear  you  have  business,"  said 
Ferrars,  addressing  the  latter  directly  for  the  first 
time.  "  With  an  object — a  direct  interest — your 
visit  to  the  United  States  may  repay  you.  I  was 
telling  Miss  Ballinger  that  if  she  expected  either 
picturesque  beauty  or  art,  she  would  be  disap- 
pointed, but  she  declares,  like  Pope,  that  'the 
proper  study  of  mankind  is  man,'  and  she  comes 
among  us,  wishing  to  see  something  of  our  soci- 
ety. You  will  show  her  the  most  costly  samples 
of  our  social  fabrics,  Mrs.  Van  Winkle,  but  how 
about  brains  ?  You  who  are  such  a  decorative 
ornament  of  literature,  I  hope  you  will  get  to- 
gether some  clever  people  for  Miss  Ballinger." 

"  Oh !  brains  are  of  no  account  in  our  New 
York  society.  I  might  pick  up  a  brain  or  two,  if 
I  were  to  sweep  around  very  diligently,  perhaps, 


46  A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

but  the  world  I  live  in  is  intensely  frivolous,  and 
whenever  I  meet  a  clever  man  I  feel  like  putting 
him  under  a  glass  case,  he's  too  good  for  daily 
use.  Miss  Ballinger  will  have  to  get  Mr.  Barham 
to  show  her  the  brains  of  society  at  Cambridge." 

Here  she  smiled  sweetly  at  the  young  man ;  and 
he  spoke  for  the  first  time,  laughing  lightly,  as  he 
said, 

"  I  am  afraid  we  are  all  in  glass  cases  there, 
classified  and  catalogued.  But,  without  putting 
Mrs.  Van  Winkle  to  the  labor  of  searching  for 
brains  in  New  York,  I  am  sure  if  Miss  Ballinger 
meets  some  of  our  brilliant  lawyers  and  noted 
speakers  she  will  find  there  is  as  good  talk  to  be 
listened  to  there  as  anywhere  in  Europe.  I  hope 
she  will  not  judge  of  American  society  from  any 
one  set,  or  any  single  specimen." 

"  Quite  right,  Mr.  Barham,"  said  Mrs.  Courtly, 
with  a  kindly  nod.  "  Though  hardly  compliment- 
ary to  us,  I  think  you  are  quite  right.  No  French- 
man would  have  said  that ;  but  you  are  too  much 
in  earnest  to  think  of  our  feelings  —  Mrs.  Van 
Winkle's  and  mine." 

Miss  Ballinger  came  to  his  defence.  "  It  is 
really  more  complimentary  to  think  you  both  in- 
capable of  personally  applying  Mr.  Barham's  re- 
mark than  if  he  had  fenced  it  round  with  those 
leafless  twigs  of  conventional  politeness  which 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  47 

only  draw  attention  to  what  they  were  meant  to 
conceal." 

"  The  leaves,  themselves,  did  that  in  Paradise," 
murmured  Mrs.  Van  Winkle,  leaning  back  with  a 
dreamy  air. 

Ballinger  was  the  only  one  who  laughed.  Mrs. 
Courtly  coughed,  and  did  not  seem  quite  at  ease. 
Ferrars  said  quickly, 

"Mr.  Barbara  is  quite  right.  Nothing  is  so 
misleading  as  personal  experience  in  forming  our 
estimate  of  a  nation.  My  friend  goes  to  England, 
and  lives  in  bis  hotel  all  the  time  (and  very  bad 
hotels  they  often  are,  it  must  be  owned),  I  have 
the  good  chance  to  meet  a  few  people  I  know,  and 
am  received  with  kindness  and  hospitality.  What 
are  our  respective  opinions  worth  ?  Never  gener- 
alize from  individuals.  Out  of  us  four  Ameri- 
cans who  are  round  this  table,  only  Mr.  Barham, 
perhaps,  is  the  least  a  typical  product  of  our 
country." 

"  Why  so  ?"  asked  Miss  Ballinger. 

"  Because  I  see  he  has  great  belief  in  our  insti- 
tutions, our  future,  our  indomitable  force.  As  to 
me,  I  gave  up  any  such  belief  when  I  was  twenty. 
You  said  yesterday  you  doubted  if  I  was  a  good 
American.  If  to  believe  that  our  crooked  paths 
are  straight,  our  rough  ways  smooth,  and  to  pro- 
claim on  the  housetops  that  we  are  the  greatest 


48  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

nation  on  earth— if  this  is  to  be  a  good  American, 
then  I  am  not  one." 

"I  never  heard  that  to  love  one's  country 
was  to  be  blind  to  her  faults,"  said  Barham, 
quickly. 

"Mr.  Ferrars  belongs  to  no  country,"  Mrs. 
Van  Winkle  fanned  herself  as  she  spoke,  with 
half- closed  eyes.  "Nor  do  I.  I  am  more  like 
a  Russian,  I  believe — a  Russian  George  Sand — 
that  is  what  I  feel  like.  And  you,  dear  Mrs. 
Courtly  ?  Are  you  not  more  French  ?  Madame 
Recamier,  with  any  number  of  Chateaubriands 
round  you,  it  suits  you  to  a  T." 

"  Are  Chateaubriands  so  plentiful  ?"  laughed 
Mrs.  Courtly,  gently.  "  I  wish  I  could  find  them  ! 
They  would  last  so  long,  too.  Madame  Recamier's 
friendships  did  not  depend  upon  her  youth.  I 
should  like  to  end  my  days  lying  on  a  sofa,  and 
surrounded  by  my  old  friends." 

"Nothing  reconciles  one  so  much  to  the  trouble 
of  living  as  those  strong  links  which  stand  the 
test  of  time,"  said  Ferrars,  looking  with  steady, 
level  eyes  at  Mrs.  Courtly. 

"Ah!  Quintin,  yours  is  one  of  those  iron  nat- 
ures whose  links  never  melt — not  very  malleable, 
but  which  will  stand  any  amount  of  strain,  as  I 
know." 

"Never  melts?"  exclaimed  Mrs.  Van  Winkle, 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  49 

opening  her  pretty  blue  eyes  in  affected  wonder. 
"  I  prefer  a  man  who  melts." 

"  And  whose  links  are  of  gold  ?"  said  Ferrars, 
without  looking  at  her.  Then  he  went  on,  while 
a  flush  mounted  to  her  cheek,  "  I  am  not  one  of 
the  precious  metals." 

"  There  is  a  great  deal  of  brass,"  replied  the 
lady,  more  tartly  than  she  had  yet  spoken.  "  Give 
me  another  cup  of  tea,  dear,  with  lots  of  sugar ; 
I  want  something  sweet  after  Mr.  Ferrars's  acidity. 
So  you  are  going  to  the  far  West,  your  brother 
tells  me,  Miss  Ballinger  ?  What  a  jouraey !" 

"And  yet  you  think  nothing  of  running  back- 
wards and  forwards  to  Europe  ?"  laughed  Grace. 

"  Oh !  traversing  our  own  continent  is  different; 
not  half  such  a  change,  and  very  trying  to  the 
complexion.  Even  in  the  East  one  gets  awfully 
dried  up.  Then,  there  is  nothing  to  see  when 
one  gets  there." 

"  It  is  not  only  prophets  who  have  no  honor  in 
their  own  country  !"  cried  Sir  Mordaunt.  "  Fancy, 
my  sister  has  never  seen  the  Tower  of  London  ! 
And  it  is  the  more  shameful,  as  I  was  there  for  a 
year." 

"  Not  imprisoned  ?"  inquired  Mrs.  Van  Winkle, 
with  mock  gravity. 

"  The  next  thing  to  it — I  was  quartered  there." 

"  Then  you  are  a  guardsman  ?  I  always  won- 
4 


50  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

dered  whether  all  guardsmen  were  like  Guy  Liv- 
ingstone. Now  I  know." 

"  Weli,  you  see  in  me  a  deceased  guardsman. 
I  left  the  service  a  few  months  ago." 

"Do  tell  me  what  brings  you  out.  to  America. 
An  heiress?  Of  course,  you  have  been  very 
wicked.  Are  you  going  to  '  ranger '  yourself  ?" 

"  Neither  reformation  nor  matrimony  is  in  my 
mind,  I  am  afraid,"  laughed  Ballinger.  "  Only  self- 
interest  and  curiosity.  I  have  one  or  two  friends 
— one,  a  brother-officer — settled  on  a  ranch  in  Col- 
orado. I  am  going  to  look  about  and  see  if  I  can 
find  a  good  investment  for  a  little  money." 

"  I  think  it  will  be  so  refreshing  to  see  ranch- 
life,  after  the  conventionalities  of  civilization," 
said  Grace. 

"  You  will  find  a  week  of  it  will  go  a  long  way," 
and  Mrs.  Courtly  shook  her  head.  To  her,  exist- 
ence without  its  intellectual  refinements  and  pic- 
torial luxuries — all  the  delicate  and  varied  entrees 
she  provided  for  herself  in  the  pleasant  feast 
which  she  called  "  life  " — without  these,  existence 
would  hardly  be  worth  having. 

"  I  would  rather  live  on  a  ranch  than  work  in 
Wall  Street  all  my  days,"  said  Barham. 

"  Wall  Street  has  solid  compensations,"  ob- 
served Ferrars. 

"I  think  money  can  be  too  dearly  bought," 


A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY  51 

returned  the  younger  man,  quickly.  "At  the 
sacrifice  of  all  independence,  I  would  not  be  rich, 
if  I  could." 

"  How  sweet  of  you,  Mr.  Barham  !  In  these 
mercenary  days  to  hear  such  a  sentiment  from  a 
man — it  is  quite  too  lovely  for  anything  !" 

Mrs.  Van  Winkle  spoke  the  words  with  a  lan- 
guid drawl,  but  there  was  a  humorous  twinkle  in 
her  eye.  In  point  of  fact,  it  was  often  difficult  to 
tell  how  far  she  meant  her  utterances  to  be  taken 
seriously.  Grace,  in  the  spirit  of  anti-humbug, 
struck  in  gayly, 

"  I  am  a  Philistine.  I  like  riches.  I  should 
like  to  know  once  how  it  feels  to  be  very  rich.  I 
think  I  could  work  in  Wall  Street — whatever  that 
may  mean — all  my  life,  if  I  could  earn  lots  of 
money  ;  but  I  never  shall." 

Barham  looked  at  her,  with  a  steady  gaze. 
Was  she  in  earnest  ? 

"  I  heard  the  worship  of  wealth  was  as  great  in 
London  as  in  New  York — but  I  did  not  believe 
it." 

"Well,"  said  Mordaunt,  "all  I  can  say  is,  I 
know  several  instances  in  the  Life  Guards  where 
a  fellow's  having  a  pot  of  money  prejudiced  other 
fellows  against  him.  They  sent  him  to  Coventry 
because  his  father  dropped  his  h's,  and  they 
made  up  their  minds  the  son  couldn't  be  a  gentle- 


52  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

man.  'I  know  one  very  nice  chap  who  couldn't 
stand  it — had  to  leave.  So  you  see  the  worship 
of  money  isn't  universal." 

"We  don't  drop  our  h's,"  Ferrars  said.  "But 
there  are  few  colloquial  sins  we  may  not  commit 
with  impunity  if  we  have  half  a  million  of  dollars 
a  year,  and  entertain." 

"  Ah  !  You  have  it  there  !"  interposed  Mrs. 
Van  Winkle.  "Our  rich  people  are  bound  to 
entertain.  Otherwise  they  are  of  no  account.  It 
is  very  logical.  We,  of  the  blue  blood,  want 
amusements,  but  are  too  poor  to  give  magnifi- 
cent fetes.  We  honor  them  with  our  presence, 
and  the  obligation  is  more  than  repaid." 

"I  honor  the  sentiment.  It  is  worthy  of  blue 
blood,  and  it  carries  conviction  with  it." 

"Mr.  Ferrars  is  detestably  satirical,  but  no 
one  minds  what  he  says,"  and  the  lady  rose. 
"It  is  nearly  dinner-time.  We  must  leave  you, 
my  dear."  And  so  the  party  broke  up. 

Next  day  Mrs.  Courtly  found  an  opportunity 
of  saying  to  Miss  Ballinger,  in  her  soft,  depreca- 
tory way, 

"I  am  afraid  you  may  form  a  false  impres- 
sion of  Mrs.  Van  Winkle.  She  is  really  a  very 
kind  woman,  as  well  as  a  clever  one,  and  she  is  a 
very  good  wife,  too,  only  you  see  her  failing.  She 
likes  to  astonish  people.  That  makes  her  say 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  53 

things  occasionally  which — which  she  had  better 
not." 

Grace  smiled.  "  I  suppose  she  has  been  spoiled 
— she  gives  one  that  idea.  Did  she  marry  for 
money  ?" 

"  Why,  no  !     What  made  you  think  that?" 

"She  looked  so  annoyed  when  Mr.  Ferrars 
talked  of  'links  of  gold.'  I  am  sure  he  meant 
something  disagreeable  by  it.  He  looked  it." 

"  Mr.  Van  Winkle  is  by  no  means  rich,  but 
she  married  him  because  she  was  in  love  ;  and 
they  are  really  very  happy.  He  is  of  a  very  good 
old  Knickerbocker  family.  She  is  very  proud  of 
that,  as  you  see.  She  has  always  a  train  of  ad- 
mirers ;  it  means  nothing,  and  Mr.  Van  Winkle 
does  not  object.  That  is  to  say,  he  doesn't  gener- 
ally. It  is  said  lie  did  so  once,  in  the  case  of  a 
man  who  was  very  rich,  when  some  one  ill-nat- 
uredly started  the  idea  that  this  person  helped  the 
establishment  along.  It  got  to  Mr.  Van  Winkle's 
ears,  and  he  gave  the  man  his  conge  there  and  then. 
It  is  the  only  time  he  ever  asserted  his  authority, 
and  I  am  not  sure  that  his  wife  did  not  like  him 
all  the  better  for  it.  If  Quintin  Ferrars  meant 
anything  by  his  'golden  links,'  it  was  that  ;  but 
I  really  think  it  was  a  chance  shot,  and  Mrs. 
Van  Winkle—" 

"What  about  her?"  said  Sir  Mordaunt.     He 


54  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

had  come  up,  unperceived  by  Mrs.  Courtly  ;  and 
she  stopped  short  on  seeing  him.  "  I  think  that 
woman  is  the  greatest  sport  I've  met  for  a  week 
of  Sundays  !  How  she  does  blow  her  own  trum- 
pet !  I  never  can  be  dull  in  New  York  as  long  as 
she  is  there.  What  sort  of  fellow  is  the  male 
Winkle,  Mrs.  Courtly  ?" 

"  A  very  nice  man,  but  he  doesn't  amount  to 
much.  He  is  a  Van.  You  mustn't  call  him 
Winkle — tout  court." 

"A  descendant  of  the  famous  Rip,  I  suppose. 
We  have  all  had  rips  for  ancestors,  at  some  time 
or  other,  no  doubt !"  and  the  young  man  laughed. 

"  For  shame  !  to  decry  your  pedigree  in  that 
way  !  We  are  very  proud  of  our  descent — when 
we  have  any  ;  and  if  we  know  who  our  great- 
grandfather was,  we  always  speak  of  him  as  hav- 
ing fought  in  the  War  of  Independence." 

The  brother  and  sister  laughed  ;  and  the  sub- 
ject of  the  Van  Winkles  was  not  continued  fur- 
ther. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE  rest  of  the  voyage  was  performed  swiftly 
and  uneventfully.  Mordaunt  Ballinger  walked 
the  quarter-deck  for  hours  with  certain  American 
men,  whom  he  encouraged  to  talk  of  their  various 
interests  and  enterprises,  and  believed  he  was 
gaining  a  vast  store  of  useful  information  there- 
by. The  acquaintances  brought  together  in  Mrs. 
Courtly's  cabin  saw  more  or  less  of  each  other, 
according  to  their  proclivities  ;  and  in  some  cases 
intimacies  were  formed  which  could  hardly  die 
the  natural  death  which  is  the  common  lot  of 
close  companionship  on  board  ship.  This  was 
especially  so  in  the  friendship  which  Miss  Ballin- 
ger had  established  with  the  Barhams,  and  though 
they  lay  more  out  of  her  path,  so  to  speak,  than 
the  others,  she  resolved  not  to  let  the  threads  of 
her  intercourse  with  mother  and  son  drop  on  land- 
ing. She  felt  really  interested  in  the  young  man  ; 
she  should  be  sorry  to  think  this  was  to  be  the 
end  of  their  long  talks  and  discussions,  pacing 
the  deck,  or  watching  the  moonlight  upon  the 


56  A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

sea,  on  warm  nights,  as  they  leaned  over  the  bul- 
warks. 

Quintin  Ferrars  also  she  had  grown  to  know, 
and  to  like  better.  That  is  to  say,  she  liked  some 
parts  of  him  better  and  disliked  other  parts  less, 
recognized  his  ability  and  made  more  allowances 
for  his  cynicism,  as  all  women  do  for  the  cyni- 
cism of  a  man  who  is  never  cjTnical  at  their  ex- 
pense. Conversation  with  him  stimulated  thought ; 
and,  though  it  generally  roused  opposition,  left 
something  behind  it  to  be  pondered  over  and  re- 
discussed  with  that  other  self  which  only  makes 
itself  heard  very  often  when  both  speakers  are 
silent. 

Mrs.  Courtly  Grace  admired  and  liked  more  and 
more.  She  had  expected  to  find  the  gracious  lit- 
tle lady  too  much  of  "a  man's  woman"  to  take 
much  thought  for  her,  an  English  girl.  They 
could  have  but  a  small  community  of  interest,  she 
thought ;  and  "  men's  women "  were,  as  a  rule, 
distasteful  to  her.  But,  whatever  her  faults  might 
be,  Mrs.  Courtly,  she  felt  sure,  was  a  really  kind 
woman  ;  and,  moreover,  so  appreciative,  so  amus- 
ing, and  so  many-sided,  that  Grace  found  it  im- 
possible to  resist  her  charm.  What  a  blessed  gift 
(taking  too  low  a  stand  among  the  virtues — in- 
deed, not  regarded  as  a  virtue  at  all  by  some) 
is  tact !  Mrs.  Courtly  possessed  it  in  a  conspicu- 


A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  57 

ous  degree.  She  never  said  anything  to  wound 
the  susceptibilities  of  her  audience  ;  whereas  Mrs. 
Van  Winkle,  clever  as  she  was,  never  seemed  to 
have,  any  perception  of  when  she  might,  with  im- 
punity, astonish  her  audience,  and  when  it  would 
be  wiser  to  sacrifice  that  keen  but  momentary  en- 
joyment. Vanity,  and  a  desire  to  maintain  her 
reputation  for  audacious  wit,  rendered  her  case- 
hardened  against  shocked  looks.  She  said  to 
Grace, 

"  You  know,  the  very  last  person  with  whom 
one  should  be  seen  in  New  York  society  is  one's 
husband.  Now,  I  started  very  badly  ;  I  began 
married  life  by  being  really  in  love  with  mine, 
and,  socially,  it  neai'ly  ruined  me.  It  has  taken 
me  fifteen  years  to  live  it  down,  and  I  am  only 
just  recovering  from  the  fatal  mistake  I  made." 

The  girl  knew  exactly  what  value  to  attach  to 
such  utterances  as  these.  She  never  gratified  the 
speaker  by  looking  surprised. 

Grace  stood  on  the  deck  with  Saul  Barham  as 
the  Teutonic  slowly,  almost  imperceptibly,  neared 
the  landing- wharf.  A  thick  fog  had  shrouded  the 
great  Statue  of  Liberty,  the  shores  of  New  Jersey, 
Staten  Island,  and  all  the  features  of  the  beautiful 
sea-avenue  to  New  York. 

"  I  am  angry,"  said  Barham,  "  that  you  should 
not  have  a  better  impression  of  the  city  on  land- 


58  A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

ing.    It  is  too  bad  to  have  a  fog  here  to  greet 
you  that  is  worthy  of  London." 

"A  delicate  attention  on  the  part  of  America 
to  make  us  Britishers  feel  '  at  home.' " 

"  I   hope  you  will  appreciate   all  such  atten- 
tions," he  returned,  smiling,   "and  not  be   too 
much  influenced  by  first  impressions.     Ladies,  I 
believe,  generally  are." 
"And  men?" 

"  Well,  a  man — at  all  events  an  American — is 
slower  in  forming  any  in  his  intercourse  with 
foreigners.  You  see,  English  manners  are  differ- 
ent in  some  ways  from  ours.  It  wouldn't  do  for 
us  to  trust  first  impressions  very  often." 

"Has  your  remark  any  personal  application?" 
asked  Grace,  laughing.  "  Did  my  manners  repel 
you  at  first?" 

"No,"  he  replied,  quietly  ;  "I  had  never  met 
a  young  lady  like  you,  and  yet  I  can't  exactly  say 
why ;  for  your  manners  have  more  of  the  frank- 
ness of  our  nicest  American  girls  than  those  of 
most  Englishwomen  I  have  met.  And  English- 
men — well,  as  I  say — they  require  to  be  known." 
Miss  Ballinger  was  silent.  She  felt  sure  that 
her  brother's  free-and-easy,  rather  de-haut-en-bas 
manner  was  in  the  sensitive  young  American's 
mind.  She  knew  also  what  a  good  fellow  Mor- 
daunt  really  was  at  heart,  and  how  either  man 


A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  59 

if  he  could  discard  his  husk  would  appreciate  the 
other.  But  the  husk  of  manner  is  as  necessary  a 
protection  to  the  Englishman,  who  is  habitually 
on  the  defensive,  as  the  unfashionable  clothes 
worn  by  the  American  were  to  his  body.  She 
hoped  these  two  would  draw  nearer  to  each  other 
by  and  by,  but  at  present  there  was  nothing  to 
be  done.  Presently  he  said, 

"  That  Lady  Clydesdale — is  she  really  a  great 
lady  ?  Her  opinions  and  her  manners  seem  to  us 
rather  odd." 

"  I  wish  I  could  say  she  is  not  well-born,  but 
she  is.  I  shouldn't  mind  her  opinions  if  she  had 
only  better  manners.  Such  an  incendiary  should 
at  least  offer  her  firebrands  with  some  persuasive 
charm,  not  fling  them  in  your  face  ;  pray  don't 
regard  her  as  a  typical  Englishwoman.  I  am 
ashamed  of  my  countrywoman." 

He  smiled. 

"And  yet  I  fancy  she  will  have  great  success 
with  some  of  our  advanced  women.  When  are  you 
coming  to  Boston,  Miss  Ballinger  ?" 

"  I  have  no  idea  ;  but  I  shall  let  you  know  as 
Boon  as  we  arrive.  I  have  promised  Mrs.  Barham 
to  go  out  and  spend  a  day  at  your  father's  house. 
It  will  interest  me  to  see  something  of  your  New 
England  village  life." 

o  o 

"  Well,"  he   began,  hesitatingly,  "  I  will   not 


60  A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERT 

discourage  you.  Mother  will  love  dearly  to  re- 
ceive you,  but  you  must  not  expect  anything  like 
an  English  village,  or — or  the  comforts  of  an 
English  rectory.  Things  are  much  simpler  with 
us  and  quite  different." 

"I  am  prepared  for  that.  If  they  were  not 
different  they  would  not  interest  me;  though, 
indeed,  all  that  concerns  your  mother  would  in- 
terest me.  I  took  to  her  at  once — I  told  you  so 
— and,  in  that  case,  my  first  impressions  have 
strengthened  more  and  more." 

He  replied,  gravely, 

"  Our  having  met  you,  Miss  Ballinger — your 
having  spoken  to  my  mother  has  made  a  great  dif- 
ference in  our  voyage.  I  shall  never  forget  it. 
When  we  meet  again  it  will  probably  not  be  on  the 
same  terms.  How  can  it  be  in  a  great  city  ?  I  shall 
call,  and  you  will  be  kind  enough  to  say  you  are  glad 
to  see  me ;  but  the  informal  intimacy  of  our  long 
talks  on  deck — can  it  be  renewed  on  shore  ?  I  think 
not.  Still,  I  shall  always  look  back  to  those  hours 
as  some  of  the  most  delightful  in  my  life." 

"  I  hope  they  will  be  renewed.  I  assure  you 
I  shall  always  remember  them  with  the  greatest 
pleasure." 

"  Ah  !  you  have  many  such  pleasant  memories, 
no  doubt.  I  have  very  few." 

The  crowd,  the   shouts  of  porters,  emissaries 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  61 

from  hotels,  and  friends  of  passengers,  who  now- 
rushed  on  board,  put  an  end  to  further  conversa- 
tion. Grace  had  only  time  to  bid  him  and  his 
mother  good-by  (she  had  already  taken  leave  of 
her  other  friends),  when  she  was  hurried  off  by 
her  brother  to  the  carriage  which  was  waiting  to 
take  them  to  the  hotel. 

And  here  I  will  seize  the  opportunity,  while 
our  travellers  are  landing,  of  saying  a  few  words 
as  to  the  Ballinger  family,  which  will  make  the 
position  of  this  brother  and  sister  more  easily  un- 
derstood. 

Sir  Henry  Ballinger,  who  died  only  two  years 
ago,  was,  as  every  one  knows,  a  remarkable  man  : 
prominent  in  politics,  he  had  been  twice  a  cabi- 
net minister,  distinguished  as  an  author  upon 
currency  and  international  law,  absorbed  in  the 
frigid,  more  than  in  the  burning,  questions  of  the 
day,  but  still  so  much  absorbed  as  to  have  lit- 
tle leisure  to  bestow  upon  his  children.  Their 
mother  died  when  Mordaunt  was  sixteen  and 
Grace  was  twelve ;  and  what  they  would  have 
done  without  Mrs.  Frampton,  their  father's  sis- 
ter, who  almost  took  Lady  Ballinger's  place  in 
the  household  from  that  time  forward,  it  is  hard 
to  say.  Mordaunt  was  at  Eton ;  he  was  an  im- 
pressionable lad,  who  stood  too  much  in  awe  of 
his  father  ever  to  make  a  friend  of  him,  and  to 


62  A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

whom  the  loss  of  a  mother's  sympathy  meant 
more  than  it  would  to  many  boys.  He  was  much 
less  clever  than  his  sister,  but  possessed  far  more 
"worldly  wisdom,"  as  it  is  called,  which,  from 
a  high  standpoint,  is  probably  nearer  akin  to 
foolishness.  Nevertheless,  he  had  a  capacity  for 
strong  attachment ;  and  as  a  boy  his  mother  had 
been  everything  to  him.  He  was  very  fond  of  his 
sister,  and  as  years  advanced  she  became  more 
and  more  prominent  in  his  life ;  but  at  this  time 
she  was  too  young  to  be  his  companion,  still  less 
his  confidante.  Happily,  Mordaunt  and  his  aunt 
had  always  been  great  friends.  He  used  to  say 
he  could  talk  more  easily  with  her  than  with  any 
one — her  plane  of  wisdom  was  not  too  far  above 
him.  Soon  after  Lady  Ballinger's  death,  Mrs. 
Frampton  arrived  on  a  long  visit ;  and  from  that 
time  filled  the  vacant  place  at  the  head  of  the 
table  during  several  months  each  year.  She  had 
her  own  house  in  London,  and  when  resident  there 
the  two  establishments  were  separate ;  but  when 
Sir  Henry  moved  to  the  country,  or  if  he  took 
Grace  abroad,  Mrs.  Frampton  always  accompa- 
nied them.  Between  the  aunt  and  the  niece  there 
was  also  a  strong  affection ;  but,  Grace's  nature 
being  less  plastic  than  her  brother's,  Mrs.  Framp- 
ton's  influence  was  less  than  it  was  upon  Mor- 
daunt. As  the  girl  grew  up,  the  difference  of 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  63 

opinion  on  many  points  between  her  aunt  and 
herself  grew  more  marked.  It  did  not  prevent 
them  being  the  best  of  friends,  but  their  way 
of  looking  at  many  questions  was  diametrically 
opposed.  Intellectually,  Mrs.  Frampton  and  her 
niece  had  much  in  common ;  but  Mordaunt  had 
that  respect  for  his  aunt's  judgment  which  led 
him  to  consult  her  upon  points  where  Grace 
would  have  decided  for  herself,  and  decided  dif- 
ferently. 

Grace's  education  had  been  a  broken  one  :  now 
sent  to  a  foreign  school  for  a  year,  when  her 
father  went  to  Australia,  now  left  in  her  aunt's 
charge,  to  the  tuition  of  governesses  and  masters. 
It  is  doubtful  whether  she  had  profited  much  by 
either.  What  she  was  she  had  made  herself,  more 
than  had  been  made  by  instruction.  She  was  not 
accomplished  ;  but  her  bright,  quick  intelligence, 
and  keen  delight  in  books,  stood  her  in  good 
stead  in  her  intercourse  with  all  the  clever  men 
who  flocked  to  her  father's  house.  She  had  been 
in  the  world  five  years  when  he  died,  and  was 
now  nearly  six-and-twenty.  Early  youth  had  had 
for  her  its  usual  illusions,  its  usual  disappoint- 
ments, but  they  had  not  embittered,  they  had 
only  strengthened,  the  sweet,  fresh  nature,  which 
retained  a  healthy  capacity  for  enjoyment. 

Within  the  past  year  she  had  suffered  the  keen- 


64  A  VOYAGE   OP  DISCOVERY 

est  trouble  she  had  yet  known,  and  consequent 
upon  this,  and  upon  their  divergent  views,  had 
occurred  the  nearest  approach  to  estrangement 
between  aunt  and  niece  which  they  had  ever 
known.  It  is  not  necessary  in  this  place  to  enter 
into  the  nature  of  the  cloud  which  had  arisen,  and 
had  darkened  the  sky  in  that  small  household. 
Of  course,  Mordaunt  Ballinger  sided  with  his 
aunt — he  always  did  in  any  family  discussion — 
and  Grace  consequently  pent  up  her  hopes  and 
her  disappointments  in  silence,  and  with  a  brave 
face  that  told  nothing.  She  did  not  go  quite  so 
much  into  the  world  during  the  following  months, 
neither  would  she  altogether  shun  society ;  and 
when  the  suggestion  came  from  Mordaunt  that 
she  and  Mrs.  Frampton  should  accompany  him  to 
America,  she  hailed  the  idea.  Change  of  scene, 
change  of  people,  change  of  thought — she  felt 
that  all  this  was  the  best  thing  for  her  just  now. 
Mrs.  Frampton  was  an  odd  combination  of  the 
child  of  nature  and  the  woman  of  the  world.  Clev- 
er, impulsive,  strong  in  her  affections,  unjust  and 
implacable  in  her  hatreds,  often  humorous,  some- 
times sarcastic,  even  at  her  own  expense,  she  pos- 
sessed an  extraordinarily  sound,  clear  judgment  in 
all  business  matters,  and  such  as  concerned  tem- 
poral welfare  and  advancement.  There  was  no  sac- 
rifice she  would  not  have  made  for  her  nephew  and 


A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERT  65 

her  niece ;  but  her  devotion  to  Grace  was  perhaps 
even  greater  than  to  Mordaunt,  though  between 
him  and  herself  there  had  never  been  a  difference, 
and  between  her  and  Grace  so  many.  This  last 
subject  of  division,  and  the  withdrawal  of  Grace's 
confidence,  the  feeling  that  there  was  one  forbid- 
den subject  between  them,  had  tried  the  elder 
woman  sorely.  She  had  been  very  bitter  about 
it  until  Grace's  demeanor  had  shown  her  that 
there  could  no  longer  be  any  discussion  ;  if  she 
attempted  to  renew  it  her  niece  left  the  room.  In 
her  inward  heart  she  admired  the  noble-minded, 
resolute  girl  all  the  more  for  her  attitude,  though 
she  never  admitted  that  she  did  so.  She  spoke 
of  it  to  Mordaunt  as  "  reprehensible  folly,"  which 
was  justly  punished — "but,  thank  goodness !  there 
is  an  end,  once  and  forever,  to  all  that"  She  was 
delightfully  inconsistent — it  made  her  the  amus- 
ing and  provoking  person  she  was — in  all  that 
did  not  pertain  to  hard-headed  calculation  and 
worldly  perspicacity. 

Mordaunt  Ballinger  found  himself,  at  his  fa- 
ther's death,  with  all  the  expensive  habits  that 
are  bred  in  the  life  he  was  leading,  and  but  very 
moderate  means.  Sir  Henry's  pension,  of  course, 
died  with  him  ;  so  did  a  considerable  income, 
which  he  had  enjoyed  as  chairman  of  certain  rail- 
way and  other  companies.  His  son  resolved  to 
5 


66  A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

rent  his  country-house,  which  was  too  expensive 
for  him  to  keep  up,  and  he  left  the  Guards.  The 
constituency  which  his  father  had  represented 
offered  to  nominate  him  in  the  late  baronet's 
place,  and  after  a  little  hesitation  he  accepted 
the  proposal,  and  was  elected.  These  steps  he 
had  not  taken  without  consulting  Mrs.  Frampton, 
whose  influence  had  also  been  wisely  exercised  in 
restraining  him  from  embarking  in  sundry  spec- 
ulations. His  thoughts  had  now  been  turned 
for  some  time  past  to  America,  as  an  Eldorado, 
where  he  might  improve  his  fortunes,  as  certain 
friends  of  his  had  done.  Not  that  he  meant  to 
give  up  Parliament,  leave  England  and  all  its 
pleasures,  and  live  upon  a  ranch.  That  would 
not  have  suited  Mordaunt  at  all.  But  there  was 
"  real  estate "  in  some  of  the  rising  cities,  silver 
mines,  shares  in  canned -meat  companies  —  rail- 
ways, tramways,  waterworks  ;  surely  in  some  of 
these  he  might  find  a  good  investment  that  would 
bring  him  in  eight  or  ten  per  cent.  Mrs.  Framp- 
ton's  present  terror  was  that  her  nephew  would 
be  induced  by  some  designing  person  to  risk  con- 
siderable sums  in  that  land  of  reckless  specula- 
tion. When  he  proposed,  therefore,  that  she  and 
Grace  should  accompany  him  on  a  visit  to  the 
United  States,  she  jumped  at  the  suggestion.  To 
see  the  Americans  chez  eux  was  the  thing  of  all 


A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  67 

others  she  had  always  wished.  It  was  odd  that 
she  had  never  been  heard  to  express  the  wish  be- 
fore, but  no  one  was  surprised  at  anything  Mrs. 
Frampton  said.  She  suddenly  remembered  that 
she  had  some  dear  friends,  the  Hurlstones,  in  New 
York.  It  was  eight  years  since  she  had  seen  or 
heard  of  them,  but  she  would  write  to  them  at 
once  ;  she  felt  sure  they  would  do  all  in  their 
power  to  make  New  York  pleasant  to  herself  and 
her  belongings.  But,  as  to  that,  her  brother's 
— Sir  Henry's  —  name  was  sure  to  secure  them  a 
warm  welcome  in  a  country  where  he  had  been 
so  well  known,  and  Mordaunt's  being  in  Parlia- 
ment would  be  an  additional  reason.  It  would  be 
charming,  too,  for  Grace ;  it  would  change  the 
current  of  her  thoughts.  She  only  said  this  to 
Mordaunt,  but  the  alacrity  with  which  his  sister 
acceded  to  the  proposition  told  him  and  his  aunt 
that  she  felt  this  to  be  true. 

Unfortunately,  within  a  week  of  their  sailing, 
just  before  Christmas,  Mrs.  Frampton  was  sum- 
moned by  telegram  to  Geneva,  by  a  sister  of  her 
late  husband.  The  message  stated  that  Miss 
Frampton  was  dying,  and  desired  her  sister-in- 
law's  presence.  Mrs.  Frampton  felt  she  had  no 
choice  but  to  obey.  It  was  unfortunate.  Had  it 
only  come  a  few  days  later !  As  it  was,  there 
was  nothing  for  it  but  to  start  by  the  next  train, 


68  A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY 

and  let  Mordaunt  and  Grace  sail  for  New  York 
without  her.  She  promised  to  follow  them,  if 
Mordaunt  resolved  to  remain  all  the  winter  in 
the  States.  And,  on  the  other  hand,  she  exact- 
ed a  promise  from  him  to  embark  in  no  scheme 
without  consulting  her.  With  this  understanding 
they  parted,  hurriedly  and  sorrowfully,  and  a 
fortnight  from  the  day  when  they  had  seen  her 
into  the  train  at  Charing  Cross  they  landed  at 
New  York. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  day  after  her  arrival  this  is  the  letter  Miss 
Ballinger  wrote  to  Mrs.  Frampton  : 

"  Wi  January,  1891. 

"DEAKEST  AUNT  SUSAN,— We  were  delighted  to  have 
your  telegram  just  before  starting,  saying  that  Miss  Framp- 
ton had  rallied.  I  hope  that  her  recovery  will  be  so  rapid 
as  to  enable  you  to  leave  her  before  many  weeks  are  over. 
"We  miss  you  terribly,  and  shall  do  so,  now  that  we  have 
landed,  more  thau  ever.  The  voyage  was  really  delight- 
ful— I  never  could  have  believed  it  would  have  gone  so 
quickly ;  and  I  had  such  an  appetite,  dear  aunt,  you 
would  have  been  ashamed  of  me — instead  of  scolding,  as 
you  have  done  lately,  because  I  ate  so  little.  Mordy  was 
very  happy.  He  made  friends  with  one  man  who  was  in 
pork,  and  another  in  oil.  (I  wonder  which  is  nicest,  to  be 
in  pork,  or  in  oil  ?)  I  always  knew  which  he  had  been 
pounding  the  deck  with,  by  his  coming  up  to  me  after- 
wards, and  saying,  '  Do  you  know,  I'm  thinking  seriously 
of  going  into  pork ' — or  '  oil,'  as  the  case  might  be.  Then 
he  fell  in  love  with  a  dear  woman,  nearly  old  enough  to  be 
his  mother,  a  Mrs.  Courtly,  whom  most  of  the  other  wom- 
en hated  and  abused  —  particularly  odious  Lady  Clydes- 
dale, who  was  on  board.  The  things  she  said  to  me 
about  her  !  .  .  .  I  replied  that  Mrs.  Courtly's  only  crime, 


70  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

as  far  as  I  could  see,  was  that  she  succeeded  in  attracting 
people—' and  it  is  a  pity  more  women  don't  try,'  I  added. 
'  They  might  at  least  try.  For  my  part,  my  only  serious 
aim  in  life  is  to  make  as  many  people  like  me  as  ever  I 
can.'  You  should  have  seen  her  face  of  ineffable  scorn 
as  she  turned  away.  You  always  say  I  am  so  toast-and- 
watery,  aunt,  that  I  can't  hate.  I  have  at  last  accom- 
plished it ;  congratulate  me  ;  I  really  do  hate  Lady  Clydes- 
dale. Among  those  on  board  whom  I  liked  was  an  odd, 
clever  man  named  Ferrars.  He  would  puzzle  and,  I  be- 
lieve, interest  you.  His  past  is  mysterious  :  he  never 
speaks  of  it,  nor,  indeed,  of  his  present,  for  that  matter.  I 
discovered— by  that  exhaustive  process  of  pumping  which 
Mordy  declares  qualifies  me  to  become  a  female  interview- 
er (Oh  !  I  have  something  to  tell  you  about  that,  presently), 
that  he  is  a  Southerner,  who  lives  chiefly  in  Europe,  and 
that  he  writes  ;  but  wliat,  and  where,  he  curtly  refused  to 
say.  He  is  quite  indifferent  to  fame  or  money,  and  we 
generally  disagreed  about  everything  :  and  yet  I  got  to 
like  him.  In  contrast  to  Mr.  Ferrars,  who  I  am  sure  is 
not  just  to  his  country's  future,  whatever  he  may  be  to  her 
present,  there  was  a  young  professor  from  Harvard,  an 
ardent  patriot,  who  could  not  bear  a  word  to  be  said 
against  America.  I  do  not  feel  sure  that  you  would  like 
this  Mr.  Barham  as  much  as  Mr.  Ferrars,  though  he  is 
to  me  much  more  interesting.  But  he  is  shy,  and  proud, 
and  not  very  forthcoming,  and  you  like  turbulent  youth. 
You  might  call  him  'a  prig,'  which  would  distress  me; 
but  when  you  saw  his  mother,  who  is  a  Philadelphian,  and 
I  am  certain  must  be  a  direct  descendant  of  "William 
Penn— so  sweet,  and  drab-colored,  and  gentle,  with  the 
youngest  and  yet  saddest  face  you  ever  looked  upon,  to  be 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  71 

the  mother  of  this  handsome  young  man — I  say,  when 
you  looked  upon  her  you  would  better  understand  why 
he  is  as  he  is  :  you  would  see  that  repression  was  born  in 
him.  Then  there  was  a  very  rich  young  man  from  New 
York,  who,  like  the  young  man  ra  Scripture,  ought  to  be 
told  to  go  and  sell  all  that  he  has,  he  would  be  so  much 
happier.  But,  being  very  stupid,  he  doesn't  know  that  he 
is  not  happy.  He  fancies  the  fatigue  of  doing  nothing 
vigorously  is  enjoyment.  Last  of  all,  in  our  set — for  you 
must  know  a  steamer  has  its  'sets,'  as  well  as  a  city — 
was  the  authoress  of  '  Phryne,'  a  rather  risky  novel  which 
has  had  some  success.  You  know  how  fatal  it  is  to  any 
but  a  strong  head  to  write  a  moderately  successful  book. 
Mrs.  Van  Winkle  is  pretty  and  good-natured,  but  I  sup- 
pose she  was  born  foolish — the  book  has  done  the  rest. 
We  got  through  the  Custom-IIouse  very  well,  though  the 
officer  seemed  to  think  it  impossible  that  any  '  gent '  could 
require  so  many  '  pants '  as  Mordy  brought  with  him.  Vir- 
ginie  had  frightened  me  so  by  saying  I  should  have  to  pay 
duty  on  all  my  new  gowns,  that  I  was  relieved  when  the 
inquisition  was  over.  The  first  impression  of  New  York 
in  a  fog  was  not  favorable.  Then  the  paving  of  the  streets! 
Words  cannot  describe  to  you  the  condition  of  all  the  thor- 
oughfares. Our  London  streets,  Heaven  knows,  are  bad 
enough  in  wet  weather  ;  and  even  in  dry  are  not  above 
reproach  compared  with  those  of  Paris  ;  but  these  ! — the 
smallest  town  in  Bulgaria  would  be  ashamed  of  such  atroc- 
ities. In  some  there  arc  holes  so  deep  that  it  is  necessary 
to  put  a  tub  or  a  few  stones  round  the  gaping  chasm  to 
prevent  people  falling  in.  In  some  the  electric  wires  were 
lying  playfully  about  under  the  horses'  feet,  a  storm,  I  am 
told,  having  brought  them  all  down  more  than  a  week  ago! 


72  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

In  Broadway  the  tramways  intersect  each  other  like  the 
criss-crossings  on  some  withered  old  palm  ;  but  the  line  of 
life  cannot  be  long,  I  imagine,  for  any  one  who  resides  there. 
We  found  comfortable  rooms  awaiting  us  at  the  hotel, 
but  heated  by  a  furnace  such  as  only  Shadrach  &  Co.  could 
face.  I  flung  open  all  the  windows,  to  the  manager's 
amazement.  On  the  table  was  a  splendid  bouquet  of 
crimson  roses,  with  a  note  and  a  card.  Whose  do  you 
think  ?  The  Hurlstones.  A  very  pretty  attention,  which 
I  am  afraid  we  should  not  have  thought  of.  To  be  greeted 
thus  on  arrival  by  strangers — for  to  us  they  are  absolute 
strangers  —  is  very  pleasant.  The  note  was  to  ask  us 
to  dine  with  them  to-night.  Presently  another  card  was 
brought  me,  on  which  was  written  'Miss  M.  T.  Clutch,' 
with  a  request  that  I  would  receive  the  lady.  I  innocently 
thought  this  must  be  another  kindly  disposed  person,  to 
whom  friends  had  written,  unknown  to  us,  on  our  behalf. 
Judge  of  my  consternation  when  a  small,  smirking  woman 
entered,  who  introduced  herself  thus  : 

"  '  I  represent  The  New  York  Scavenger,  one  of  our 
prominent  dailies,  Miss  Ballinger.  Your  name  is  well- 
known — I  may  say  it  is  a  household  word  among  us.  I 
trust  you  feel  like  answering  a  few  questions  which  will 
be  of  interest  to  our  readers.' 

"  'You  must  be  mistaking  me  for  some  one  else,'  I  re- 
plied. '  I  am  not  eminent  in  any  way,  and  your  readers 
can  not  possibly — '  She  interrupted  me,  '  Oh  !  but  you 
are  Sir  Henry  Ballinger's  daughter,  and,  as  such,  are  quite 
an  interesting  personality  in  America.  We  thought  a  heap 
of  him.  We  claim  that  his  book  had  a  bigger  circulation 
in  the  States  than  in  England.' 

"  '  It  is  a  pity,  then,  that  the  States  paid  him  nothing  for 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOYEKY  73 

it,'  I  said.  'But  do  you  really  mean  that  you  consider  the 
relations  of  a  well-known  man  to  be  public  property  ?  I 
have  not  even  written  a  book  that  can  be  pirated.  I  don't 
lecture,  or  preach,  or  act.  I  am  a  perfectly  obscure  indi- 
vidual, whom  your  readers  cannot  possibly  know  anything 
about.' 

"  '  Oh  !  but  they  do,'  she  insisted.  '  They've  seen  your 
photograph  among  the  society  beauties;  they've  read  your 
name  in  the  society  papers;  they  know  you  belong  to  the 
tip-top  swells.  And  then  there  was  the  report  which  went 
all  the  round  of  the  States  that  a  German  prince  had  near- 
ly blown  out  his  brains  for  love  of  you.' 

"  This  was  more  than  I  could  stand.  1  rose  quickly. 
'  You  must  pardon  me  if  I  decline  to  continue  this  con- 
versation. I  am  not  accountable  for  all  the  rubbish  you 
may  have  heard,  but  at  least  I  will  not  be  a  party  to  dis- 
seminating more.  Good-morning.' 

"  'You  might  just  tell  me  why  you  are  come  here,  and 
— and  a  few  other  things  ?' 

"  '  Nothing  at  all.     I  wish  to  remain  unnoticed.' 

" '  Well  !  That  is  real  disobliging.  But  if  you  conclude 
to  say  nothing,  I  guess  it's  no  good  my  staying.' 

"  '  No,'  I  repeated  after  her,  '  I  guess  it's  no  good.' 

"And  so  she  left  the  room.  Mordy  says  I  ought  to  have 
submitted  to  the  infliction,  and  that  I  showed  my  usual 
want  of  worldly  wisdom  in  snubbing  a  reporter.  But 
why  ?  It  is  all  very  well  for  him  to  see  these  people  :  he 
has  had  a  tribe  of  them  after  him,  and  it  may  be  proper 
and  even  useful  that  he  should  see  them  all.  But  in  my 
case  it  would  be  worse  than  ridiculous,  and  I  think  it  a 
gross  piece  of  impertinence  on  Miss  Clutch's  part,  trying 
to  force  publicity  upon  me. 


74  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  10t7i  January.— I  did  not  close  my  letter  yesterday, 
finding  it  would  catch  to-day's  mail  if  I  posted  it  this 
morning  ;  and  I  knew  you  would  like  to  hear  about  our 
dinner.  The  Hurlstones  live  in  Fifth  Avenue.  It  is  a  fine 
house,  and  everything  about  it  is  very  grand— more  grand, 
perhaps,  than  comfortable,  according  to  our  ideas.  Amer- 
icans have  always  been  ruled  by  French  taste,  not  only  in 
dress,  but  in  art  and  in  certain  social  matters.  The  old 
French  idea  of  a  salon  prevails  here  :  gorgeous  furni- 
ture, but  no  books,  no  writing-table,  no  evidences  of  oc- 
cupation— except  a  grand  piano,  shrouded  in  some  rare 
gold-woven  tapestry.  A  few  pictures  by  Corot,  Daubigny, 
and  Troyon  adorn  the  walls.  A  bust  of  Mrs.  Hurlstone 
by  D'Epinay,  with  a  bunch  of  roses  in  her  hair,  a  necklace 
and  a  lace  fichu  over  her  shoulders,  stands  in  the  window. 
The  two  ladies  were  dressed,  like  their  home,  in  the  perfec- 
tion of  French  taste.  You  know  the  father  and  the  mother 
— who  is  still  handsome— so  I  need  not  describe  them  ; 
but  the  daughter  has  grown  up  since  they  were  in  Eng- 
land, and  is  considered  a  beauty.  She  has  delicate  feat- 
ures, fine  eyes,  and  pretty,  though  not  brilliant,  coloring. 
She  is  intelligent,  vivacious,  and  meets  one  more  than  half 
way  in  her  desire  to  be  agreeable,  as  few  English  girls  of 
eighteen  would  be  able  to  do.  She  has,  moreover,  no 
twang,  no  ugly  intonations  of  voice.  Why  don't  I  ad- 
mire her  more  ?  I  kept  asking  myself  this  as  I  watched 
her.  Though  set  off  by  dress  to  the  best  advantage,  for 
some  reason  she  does  not  produce  the  effect  she  should. 
There  is  one  son,  a  year  older,  equally  good-looking,  per- 
haps even  handsomer,  but  of  that  order  of  beauty  that 
leaves  no  impression.  I  have  already  forgotten  what  he 
was  like,  except  that  he  wore  a  very  large  diamond  in  his 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  75 

shirt-front.  The  father  took  me  in  to  dinner.  I  like  him 
exceedingly,  perhaps  the  best  of  the  family;  but  all  were 
most  amiable.  "We  were  sixteen  at  dinner.  Nearly  every 
other  guest  was  actually,  or  prospectively,  a  millionnaire. 
The  women  were  all  very  well  dressed,  and  wore  a  great 
many  jewels — more  than,  perhaps,  we  should  think  quite 
good  taste  for  this  sort  of  party.  They  were,  one  and  all, 
extremely  civil— offering  to  take  me  out  driving,  and  so 
on.  One  of  them,  a  Mrs.  Siebel,  married  to  a  wealthy 
banker  of  German  origin,  was  particularly  bright  and 
amusing.  I  felt  as  if  I  knew  her  better  in  half  an  hour 
than  I  have  ever  done  an  Englishwoman  in  the  same  time. 
Another,  Mrs.  Thorley,  who  is  the  sovereign  of  all  social 
entertainments  here,  was  most  gracious.  She  is  going  to 
give  a  great  ball,  to  which  she  invited  us.  Some  of  the 
men  struck  me  as  clever;  especially  in  conversation  with 
their  own  countrywomen,  their  quickness  and  incisiveness 
were  remarkable.  With  me  they  seemed  a  little  stiff — a 
little  on  their  p's  and  q's.  One  of  the  exceptions  was  a 
man  whom  they  called  'George  Ray  the  Third.'  "When  I 
inquired  the  reason  of  this  curious  appellation  I  was  told 
it  was  because  his  father  and  grandfather,  both  alive,  were 
also  Georges.  He  is  a  splendid  animal,  and  he  knows  it. 
He  certainly  cannot  be  accused  of  being  stiff.  He  planted 
his  chair  opposite  me,  leant  his  elbows  on  his  knees,  and 
told  me  of  all  the  great  people  he  knew  in  London,  as 
though  he  thought  that  was  the  only  topic  that  would  in- 
terest me.  This  was  not  clever  on  George  the  Third's 
part.  And  yet  he  was  anything  but  dull,  and  his  perfect 
self-satisfaction  entertained  me.  Mrs.  Hurlstone  seemed 
afraid  he  might  prove  perilously  entertaining.  She  was 
good  enough  to  inform  me  that  he  had  not  a  penny — he 


76  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

had  run  through  everything.  It  was  considerate  of  her. 
A  much  more  amusing  man,  however,  sat  next  me  at  din- 
ner— a  barrister  named  Sims,  shrewd  and  humorous.  I 
asked  him  who  a  little  red-haired  man  with  a  waxed 
moustache  opposite  was  ;  evidently  a  foreigner.  He  re- 
plied, '  He  is  Jean  Jacques,  Marquis  de  Trefeuille,  a  pair 
de  France  of  the  first  water,  who  is  come  over  here  to  hitch 
on  to  an  heiress,  if  he  can.  It  was  of  him  that  some  wag 
wrote, 

"  '  "  Tu  es  Jean,  tu  es  Jacques,  tu  es  roux,  tu  es  sot, 

Mais  tu  n'cs  pas  Jean  Jacques  Rousseau !'  " 
I  inquired  if  the  girl  next  him  was  the  future  marquise. 
He  shook  his  head.  '  I  doubt  it.  Even  if  she  tumbles 
to  the  coronet,  he  will  find  her  father  won't  make  the 
settlement  the  marquis  expects.  He  will  give  her  a  big 
allowance,  but  not  a  lump  sum  down,  and  I  doubt  if  that 
will  suit  the  marquis.'  Before  the  evening  was  over  Mr. 
Sims  asked  Mordy  and  me  to  dine  with  him  at  Delmon- 
ico's  next  week.  I  have  no  time  for  more. 

"  Your  ever  affectionate  niece, 

"GRACE  BALLINGER. 

"P.S. — Mordy  says  he  will  write  to  you  by  the  next 
mail.  He  is  already  up  to  his  eyes  in  engagements,  and 
made  a  great  deal  of,  a  great  deal  more  of  than  he  is  in 
London,  so  no  wonder  he  likes  it. 

"Second  P.S. — Mordy  has  just  run  in,  shouting  with 
laughter,  this  morning's  Scavenger  in  his  hand.  '  Here 
you  are  !'  he  cried,  'and  serve  you  right  !'  Then  he  read 
the  cutting  (I  am  not  sunk  so  low  as  to  mean  a  pun)  which 
I  enclose.  I  hope  it  will  amuse  you  as  much  as  it  did 
him." 

The  paragraph  was  as  follows  : 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  77 

"Sir  Mordaunt  Ballinger,  Baronet  and  M.P. ,  with  his 
sister,  landed  here  from  the  Teutonic  yesterday.  She  is 
credited  with  being  a  London  belle,  and  as  such,  and  the 
daughter  of  one  of  the  few  Englishmen  who  have  not 
written  gross  falsehoods  concerning  our  country,  we  were 
desirous  of  interviewing  her;  but  the  young  woman,  with 
a  rudeness  peculiarly  British,  refused  to  submit  to  any  in- 
terrogation. If  she  is  a  specimen  of  London's  beauty  we 
cannot  congratulate  that  city  on  its  show.  A  grenadier 
in  petticoats,  quite  wanting  in  the  delicacy  and  elegance 
we  consider  essential  for  beauty,  best  describes  her.  She 
is  decidedly  too  fleshy.  Her  hair  is  not  stylishly  coifed, 
and  there  is  a  slip-sloppiness  about  her  attire  which  denotes 
that  she  is  not  gowned  in  Paris.  Altogether,  we  have 
seldom  experienced  a  greater  disappointment,  both  as  to 
appearance  and  manner,  in  a  woman  of  whom  we  had 
been  taught  to  expect  so  much." 


CHAPTER  VI 

SIR  MOKDAUNT  BALLINGER  was,  indeed,  as  his 
sister  had  said,  made  a  great  deal  of  in  New  York 
society.     It  took  but  a  few  days  to  accomplish 
this.     From  the  square,  business-like   letters   to 
the  blush-colored  note,  documents  poured  in  on 
him  all  day  long.     There  were  invitations  from 
men  to  lunch  at  the  "Lawyers'  Club  down-town," 
to  meet  railway  directors,  promoters  of  mines, 
and  others  "  who  can  give  you  information  con- 
cerning," etc.,  etc.     There  were  formal  cards  re- 
questing his  presence  at  great  club  dinners  and 
private  banquets  ;  and  there  were  informal  invita- 
tions to  every  species  of  entertainment,  from  four 
o'clock  teas  upwards.     No  stranger  in  London 
ever  found  himself  so  swiftly  and  surely  swept 
away  on  a  tide  of  hospitality.     Mrs.  Frampton 
had   rightly  predicted   that  her  brother's  name 
would  be  an  "  open  sesame"  to  his  son  and  daugh- 
ter.    For  Grace  was  not  left  out  of  all  this  cordial 
welcome.     Ladies'  luncheons,  "  to  meet  Miss  Bal- 
linger,"  theatre  parties,  receptions,  diversions  of 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  79 

all  kinds,  were  offered  her.  Still,  it  was  not  to  be 
expected  that  she  should  be  made  quite  so  much 
fuss  with  as  her  brother.  He' was  in  some  sense 
a  public  man.  His  name  and  position  as  his 
father's  successor  and  an  M.P.  carried  a  certain 
weight;  and  then  he  was  good-looking,  with  inva- 
riably charming  manners  to  women,  and  variably 
attractive  ones  to  men,  with  a  genuine  relish  of  a 
joke,  which  made  him  popular  after  dinner  among 
those  who  told  good  stories  —  and  where  is  the 
sharp  American  who  has  not  a  store  of  them? 
For  serious,  practical  purposes,  however,  these 
gifts  did  not,  as  a  certain  May  Clayton  told  him, 
"  amount  to  much." 

"  You're  a  lovely  man  to  flirt  with,  but,  unless 
you  find  a  girl  with  a  pile,  you're  not  eligible  as 
a  husband,  you  see." 

May  Clayton  was  a  young  lady  whom  he  met 
at  that  dinner  Mr.  Sims  gave  at  Delmonico's.  She 
was  a  "bud,"  as  Mr.  Sims  informed  his  English 
friends — that  is,  she  was  only  just  formally  in- 
troduced to  society.  But,  owing  to  her  education, 
she  had  no  shyness  or  diffidence,  and  in  knowl- 
edge of  the  world  and  effrontery  of  speech  might 
have  been  a  woman  of  forty.  She  could  not  re- 
member the  time  when  she  had  not  had  flirtations, 
had  not  been  escorted  back  from  daily  school  by 
youthful  beaux,  had  not  been  to  parties  every 


80  A    VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY 

week,  and  received  bouquets  and  bonbons.  It 
was  astonishing  she  should  be  as  captivating  as 
she  was,  with  all  the  bloom  of  youth  rubbed  off 
her  and  her  speech  interlarded  with  slang.  But 
she  was  pretty,  quick-witted,  and  her  exuberant 
spirits  were  especially  attractive  to  English  people, 
who  have  so  little  gas  in  themselves  they  are  glad 
to  be  lit  and  their  stock  replenished  by  others. 
She  and  a  Mrs.  Flynn  were  the  only  ladies  besides 
Grace.  Both  of  them  could  tell  who  their  grand- 
fathers were,  both  had  connections  who  were 
among  the  Four  Hundred,  and  yet  neither  were 
in  what  Mr.  Sims  called  "  the  swim."  They  went 
to  the  Assembly  and  Patriarch  balls,  but  the 
great  leaders  of  society  knew  them  not ;  they 
had  not  learned  as  yet  to  ingratiate  themselves 
with  the  venerable  leader  of  cotillons,  Mrs.  Flynn 
not  being  rich  enough  to  give  balls  herself.  They 
were  cousins.  Mr.  Flynn  had  something  to  do 
with  steel  plates,  and  had  failed  twice.  Perhaps 
this  was  why  his  pretty  little  wife  had  also  failed. 
He  rarely  went  into  society,  nor  did  Mrs.  Clayton 
when  she  could  avoid  it,  being  apparently  shelved 
as  completely  as  though  she  were  defunct.  Her 
daughter  already  received  visits,  gave  parties,  and 
went  everywhere,  either  with  Mrs.  Flynn  or  alone 
to  houses  where  there  was  a  matron.  She  told  Sir 
Mordaunt  she  expected  him  to  call,  "and  mind, 


A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  81 

you're  not  to  ask  for  mamma,  but  for  me."  And 
to  Grace  she  said,  "  You're  just  as  nice  as  ever  you 
can  be,  and  I  hope  you'll  come  and  see  me,  but 
not  with  your  brother."  May  was  bright,  and 
cheery,  and  shrill  as  a  canary.  She  chirped  and 
trilled  away,  drowning  every  one  else's  voice, 
even  those  of  the  young  American  men  of  the 
party,  though  they  were  jovial,  high-spirited  fel- 
lows, fully  able  to  hold  their  own.  She  told  one 
of  them  who  was  boasting  a  little  to  "  come  off 
that  roof !"  To  Ballinger,  who  said  something 
about  the  breast  and  the  leg  of  a  chicken,  she 
said, "  We  always  call  it  the  brown  meat  and  white 
meat." 

"  Would  not  that  sound  rather  odd  if  applied 
to  the  human  form  ?"  he  asked,  with  apparent  in- 
nocence. 

"  Well !  To  be  sure — I  never  thought  of  that ! 
Then  she  seemed  about  to  illustrate  this  by  an 
example,  but  only  laughed  and  turned  the  sub- 
ject. Being  challenged,  she  sang  a  stave  of  some 
"darky"  song,  to  the  delight  of  her  auditors, 
then  suddenly  stopped.  "No,  it  isn't  nice.  I 
won't  sing  any  more,"  nor  could  any  supplica- 
tions induce  her  to  continue.  The  audacious, 
wayward  little  creature  had  evidently  clearly  de- 
fined limits  of  her  own,  beyond  which  her  high 
spirits  never  transgressed,  no  matter  what  en- 
6 


82  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

couragement  she  met.  And  her  admirers  undjer- 
stood  this.  They  drew  her  out,  and  roared  at  her 
sallies  ;  but  there  was  no  suspicion  of  license  in 
the  familiarity,  which  was  nevertheless  unlike 
anything  to  which  the  English  guests  had  been 
accustomed. 

"Have  they  all  been  brought  up  together?" 
Miss  Ballinger  asked  her  host. 

"  Oh,  no.  She  is  a  Kentucky  girl — only  came 
here  this  winter.  They  probably  danced  the 
German  together  for  the  first  time  a  few  weeks 
ago.  I  asked  her  and  Mrs.  Flynn,  because  I 
thought  it  would  amuse  you  more  to  meet  two 
individual  types  of  Americans  of  a  certain  stamp 
— as  they  are  before  the  edge  is  taken  off  them — 
than  the  smart  conventional  women,  such  as  we 
met  the  other  night,  who  are  much  the  same  all 
the  world  over.  You  don't  object  ?" 

"  On  the  contrary,  I  much  prefer  it.  I  am  all 
for  different  nations  having  different  codes  of 
manners.  I  don't  see  why  we  are  all  to  be  built 
up  on  the  same  pattern." 

Mr.  Sims  laughed.  "  Don't  run  away  with  the 
impression  that  this  is  the  general  code  of  man- 
ners. No ;  they  belong  to  a  certain  type — a  type 
which  you  English  enjoy  more  than  some  of  our 
own  countrymen  do,  especially  the  Anglomaniacs. 
We  shall  soon  have  all  the  originality  rubbed  out 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  83 

of  us.  There  is  Mrs.  Flynn.  She  was  twice  as 
amusing  a  year  or  two  ago.  Now  she  is  afraid  to 
let  herself  go.  She  is  eating  her  heart  out,  poor 
little  woman,  because  she  doesn't  get  on.  I'm 
afraid  she  is  going  in  for  the  '  prunes  and  prism ' 
business." 

"  I  shouldn't  have  thought  it,"  said  Miss  Bal- 
linger,  smiling,  as  she  glanced  at  the  graceful  little 
woman,  who  was  carrying  on  a  lively  flirtation 
with  Mordaunt. 

After  dinner  they  went  to  the  theatre,  where 
their  host  had  taken  a  row  of  stalls,  in  order  that 
his  guests  might  see  a  thoroughly  representative 
American  play.  Viewed  as  a  literary  production, 
the  piece  was  amazing.  But  the  capital  picture 
of  American  country  life,  the  naturalness  of  the 
characters,  the  humor  and  pathos  of  the  acting  in 
these  scenes,  redeemed  that  portion  which  was 
supposed  to  depict  the  graces  and  the  vices  of  the 
moneyed  aristocracy  of  New  York.  It  seemed 
curious  to  Grace  that  the  actors  and  actresses 
should  not  have  caught  even  the  faintest  outward 
resemblance  to  ladies  and  gentlemen.  On  this 
point,  however,  her  American  acquaintances  were 
more  indignant,  more  bitter  in  ridicule,  than  her- 
self. 

Mordaunt   Ballinger    told    his    sister,  as   they 
drove  home,  that  New  York  was  an  awfully  nice 


84  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

place.  He  believed  he  was  being  put  up  to  a 
good  thing  or  two,  and  he  should  be  in  no  hurry 
to  go  away.  Grace  assured  him  she  was  quite 
content  to  remain  there,  as  long  as  he  liked. 
"  Only  don't  fall  in  love  with  Miss  Clayton,"  she 
added,  laughing.  "I  don't  think  Aunt  Susan 
could  stand  her  for  a  niece." 

He  laughed  in  return.  "  She  is  very  fetching. 
Why  is  it  that  no  English  girl  has  that  abandon? 
But  you  needn't  be  afraid.  She  is  too  'cute  to 
marry  a  pauper.  She  warned  me  that  I  wasn't 
eligible.  Fancy  an  English  girl  doing  that  !  As 
Sims  said  (Sims  is  a  deuced  clever  fellow), '  Amer- 
ican women  are  like  pins.  Their  heads  will  al- 
ways prevent  them  from  being  lost,  plunge  they 
never  so  deep  !'  " 

Quintin  Ferrars  called  on  the  Ballingers  the 
day  after  their  arrival.  He  was  remaining  on  in 
New  York ;  for  what  purpose  did  not  seem  very 
clear,  as  he  had  told  Grace  during  the  voyage 
that  business  in  Virginia  was  bringing  him  over, 
and  that  nothing  but  business  would  have  induced 
him  to  come  at  this  season.  Nor  had  he  any 
friends  in  New  York.  He  seemed  as  much  a 
stranger  there  as  the  Ballingers — indeed,  more  so, 
for  they  had  invitations  and  he  had  none — and 
spoke  with  profound  aversion  of  New  York  soci- 
ety. He  visited  with  them  the  Metropolitan  Mu- 


A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  85 

seum  of  Art,  some  exhibitions  of  modern  pict- 
ures, and  several  private  collections  which  they 
had  obtained  permission  to  see.  They  also  ac- 
companied him  to  Daly's  Theatre,  where  some  of 
those  slight  comedies  in  which  the  canvas  was 
nothing  and  the  work  thereon  perfection  were 
being  performed.  His  remarks  were  always  tren- 
chant and  original,  his  satire  sometimes  pungent. 
But  it  seemed  to  Grace  that  the  man  was  more 
depressed,  and  at  times  more  bitter,  than  he  had 
appeared  during  the  passage.  The  one  thing 
which  she  did  not  see  was  that  he  was  in  love 
with  her.  Mordaunt,  with  not  half  her  perspi- 
cacity, saw  it,  but  held  his  peace.  Grace  had  too 
recently  had  a  bitter  disappointment  for  him  to 
fear  that  she  would  fall  in  love  with  the  first 
middle-aged  American  who  laid  his  heart  and 
fortune  at  her  feet.  Still,  it  was  well  that  he 
should  make  inquiries  touching  this  Ferrars.  But 
he  could  learn  little  or  nothing.  Those  he  asked 
said  the  man  came  of  a  good  old  Virginian  stock, 
and  was  well  off.  But  he  had  not  lived  in  Amer- 
ica for  many  years ;  during  his  occasional  visits 
few  saw  him ;  if  anything  was  to  be  known  of  his 
life,  it  was  not  in  New  York. 

About  Gunning,  on  the  other  hand,  who  had 
been  unremitting  in  his  attentions  to  Grace  ever 
since  their  arrival,  there  were  no  inquiries  to  be 


86  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

made.  He  had  proposed  Sir  Mordaunt  as  a  vis- 
itor to  the  Knickerbocker  and  Manhattan  Ath- 
letic Clubs.  There  and  elsewhere  every  one  spoke 
well  of  the  young  man.  He  did  not  drink  ;  he 
did  not  gamble;  he  had  never  been  known  to  do 
a  shabby  thing.  He  was  manly,  straightforward, 
and  liberal  with  his  money.  To  his  mother,  who 
lived  with  him,  he  was  an  excellent  son ;  to  his 
companions  a  generous  friend.  He  was  not  al- 
ways "  very  good  form,"  but  Ballinger  had  seen 
worse  failings  than  a  little  bombast,  a  little 
empty  talk,  knocked  out  of  a  man.  He  certainly 
did  not  wish  his  sister  to  marry  an  American,  he 
said  to  himself;  but  if  she  should  have  a  fancy 
that  way,  it  would  be  as  well  if  she  would  select 
one  for  whom  every  one  had  a  good  word,  and 
who  possessed  a  million  of  dollars  a  year. 
Here  is  a  passage  from  a  letter  to  his  aunt : 

"  People  say  no  American  man  ever  really  likes  an 
Englishman.  Some  of  the  young  fellows  may  be  a  little 
jealous  of  a  stranger,  if  he  has  any  success  here  ;  but  all  I 
know  is  that  most  of  them  have  been  awfully  kind  to  me, 
and  many  of  them  are  capital  company.  I  dare  say  one 
mustn't  inquire  too  curiously  how  some  of  these  great 
fortunes  were  made ;  that  is  no  concern  of  mine.  They 
all  seem  very  glad  to  put  one  in  the  way  of  making  a  good 
thing.  One  fellow  tells  me  that  orange  groves  or  fruit- 
orchards  in  Southern  California  are  the  safest  invest- 
ments ;  giving  the  largest  returns,  from  25  to  40  per  cent. 


A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  87 

on  the  capital  laid  out.  Another  advises  'reel  estate,'  as 
they  call  it,  near  one  of  the  rising  cities  (mining  centres) 
in  Colorado.  He  says  land  can't  fail  to  double  or  treble 
in  value,  only  one  must  be  content  to  let  the  money  re- 
main tied  up  for  a  time.  A  third  recommends  a  Mexican 
opal  mine  which  he  says  he  knows  is  a  first-rate  thing. 
But  the  man  I  am  most  disposed  to  trust  is  a  shrewd  chap 
named  Reid,  to  whom  I  brought  a  letter.  He  has  been 
awfully  kind  explaining  things.  He  says  there  is  noth- 
ing like  being  on  the  spot,  and  recommends  strongly  my 
going  out  West  and  looking  into  these  various  invest- 
ments. He  has  been  explaining  to  me  how  the  whole 
city  is  ruled  by  the  Irish  vote,  and  what  awful  corruption 
goes  on.  Talk  of  liberty !  It  seems  to  me  they  have  pre- 
cious little  here — everything  is  sacrificed  to  party.  And 
the  worst  of  it  is,  the  best  men  stand  aloof.  Fellows 
of  high  character  and  enormous  wealth,  who  ought  to 
have  the  chief  weight  in  municipal  matters,  have  none. 
They  won't  mix  themselves  up  with  the  Irish,  whom  they 
hate.  Apropos  of  Americans,  the  greatest  parti  in  New 
York,  a  young  chap  named  Gunning,  is  awfully  gone 
on  Grace.  He  crossed  with  us,  and  it  began  then ;  but 
she  would  have  nothing  to  say  to  him,  preferring  the  so- 
ciety of  a  man  nearly  old  enough  to  be  her  father,  named 
Ferrars  (so  like  her,  isn't  it  ?),  or  of  a  thin,  pasty-looking 
young  professor,  in  horribly  made  overalls  and  a  '  reach- 
me-down.'  Gracey  always  will  be  queer  in  her  tastes  to 
the  end  of  the  chapter!  Flowers  come  every  morning 
from  this  Gunning.  She  can't  return  them,  but  she  de- 
clines every  other  mortal  thing  he  offers— his  riding-horses, 
carriages,  theatre-parties,  etc.  I  have  had  difficulty  in  get- 
ting her  to  accept  a  party  he  is  giving  '  to  meet  Miss  Bal- 


88  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

linger  '—that  is  the  New  York  form  when  they  want  to  do  a 
person  special  honor.  He  heard  her  say  she  would  like  to 
see  a  Spanish  dancer  who  is  here,  and  who  only  performs 
at  a  low  cafe  where  ladies  can't  go,  but  occasionally  dances 
at  private  houses  for  a  select  circle — that  is  how  he  caught 
her.  I  wish  I  could  see  that  she  took  any  interest  in  any 
one  particularly  — that  there  was  any  symptom  of  her 
having  forgotten.  She  is  always  cheery,  always  ready  for 
everything  —  but,  by  the  bye,  have  you  heard  when  the 
trial  is  to  take  place  ?  I  hope  soon,  while  we  are  over 
here.  It  would  be  much  better  that  Grace  should  not  be 
in  England  when  it  comes  off.  It  would  worry  her,  and 
rake  up  the  past.  Well !  I  hope  you  are  coming  out  to 
us  soon.  We  both  want  you  awfully." 

On  the  subject  of  invitations  I  may  here  give  a 
characteristic  note  which  Miss  Ballinger  received 
a  few  days  after  their  arrival : 

"MY  DEAR  Miss  BALLINGER, — Will  you  and  your  broth- 
er give  me  the  pleasure  of  your  company  at  a  blue  dinner 
on  the  28th  of  January,  at  8  o'clock?  I  have  selected  this 
color,  not  because  I  am  called  a  '  blue-stocking '  by  those 
who  are  amazed  that  a  woman  should  know  Greek,  but 
to  honor  you  and  the  country  I  adore.  I  shall  never  rest 
till  Mr.  Van  Winkle  is  appointed  Minister  to  Saint  James's. 
I  believe  your  Queen  would  be  gratified  by  having  at  her 
court  one  woman  representative  alike  of  literature  and 
fashion.  Your  true-blue  friend, 

"  COKRINA  VAN  WINKLE." 

This  dinner  had  not  yet  come  off.  In  the  mean- 
time Mordaunt  and  Grace  went  to  the  Hurlstones' 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  89 

box  one  night  to  hear  "Siegfried."  The  box  was 
a  large  one,  on  the  grand  tier,  and  besides  the 
Hurlstone  ladies  and  the  Ballingers,  there  were 
Gunning  and  another  of  the  jeimesse  doree  of  New 
York.  Grace  had  heard  that  society  was  enthu- 
siastic about  "Wagner's  music,  and  that  there  was 
a  great  difficulty  in  obtaining  a  good  opera-box, 
for  which  far  larger  sums  were  paid  than  are  ever 
given  in  England.  She  innocently  imagined  that 
people  went  to  listen  to  the  music  ;  she  was  unde- 
ceived. She  had  petitioned  to  go  early,  as  she 
had  never  heard  "  Siegfried,"  and  she  and  Mor- 
daunt  were  in  the  box  nearly  an  hour  before  the 
owners  of  it  arrived.  At  first  all  was  well.  The 
upper  boxes  were  crowded  by  Germans,  who  list- 
ened devoutly  to  every  note;  so  did  the  unfash- 
ionable occupants  of  the  stalls  in  their  morning 
dress.  But  in  the  middle  of  the  second  act,  the 
grand  tier,  which  till  then  had  been  nearly  empty, 
filled  rapidly  with  smart  ladies  and  their  attend- 
ant cavaliers,  and  from  that  time  onward  a  con- 
tinuous fire  of  conversation  was  kept  up,  without 
even  the  semblance  of  any  attention  to  the  or- 
chestra or  the  stage.  That  was  the  only  part  of 
the  theatre  to  which  opera-glasses  seemed  rarely 
to  be  directed.  They  raked  every  box,  and  the 
Hurlstones',  by  reason  of  its  stranger  guests, 
more  persistently  than  any  other.  In  vain  Grace 


90  A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

fixed  her  eyes  alternately  on  the  book  of  the 
words  and  on  the  stage.  In  vain  there  were  angry 
expostulations  from  the  stalls  of  "  Stop  that  talk- 
ing !"  Miss  Hurlstone  actually  turned  round  delib- 
erately and  sat  with  her  back  to  the  house,  talk- 
ing to  the  Marquis  de  Trefeuille  and  a  number  of 
other  young  men  who  flocked  in  and  out ;  and  in 
doing  this,  she  was  only  following  the  example  of 
others.  To  listen  to  the  lightest  French  or  Ital- 
ian opera  under  such  conditions  would  have  been 
impossible  ;  but  when  the  music  was  Wagner's — 
music  which  demands  the  strain  of  every  nerve, 
the  tension  of  every  intellectual  faculty,  to  grasp 
the  meaning  of  that  tumult  of  sound,  to  follow 
and  seize  the  floating  gossamers  of  melody  from 
the  brambles  of  apparent  discord — it  was  nothing 
short  of  exasperating.  It  became  sound  and  fury, 
signifying  nothing.  Grace  recalled  the  darkness, 
the  death-like  silence,  of  the  theatre  at  Bayreuth. 
If  "Wagner  could  have  risen  from  the  grave  to 
see  himself  so  treated !  She  gave  it  up  at  last  in 
despair,  as  Mrs.  Hurlstone  leaned  forward  for 
the  fourth  time  (Gunning  had  been  pouring  his 
thin  stream  of  small  talk  over  her  shoulder)  and 
said, 

"  There  is  the  Princess  Lamperti  just  come  in 
with  George  Ray — that  fat  woman  in  black,  with 
yellow  pompons  and  pearls.  You  know  her  his- 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  91 

tory,  poor  thing !  She  was  Miss  Morse,  of  Balti- 
more, and  fell  in  love  with  the  prince  at  Rome. 
He  married  her  for  her  money,  and  he  behaved 
very  ill.  They  were  married  more  than  ten 
years.  There  was  never  a  word  said  against  her, 
but  after  a  miserable  life  she  has  at  last  divorced 
him  on  the  ground  of  his  desertion  at  his  solicita- 
tion, they  say,  in  order  that  he  may  marry  some 
Spanish  woman  to  whom  he  has  long  been  de- 
voted, and  who  is  also  very  rich.  Dreadful,  isn't 
it  ?  Every  one  feels  very  much  for  the  poor  prin- 
cess." 

Here  Gunning,  who  had  heard  part  of  Mrs. 
Hurlstone's  narrative,  said, 

"  You  know  the  prince,  I  suppose,  Mrs.  Hurl- 
stone  ?  Look  up  at  the  third  box  on  the  second 
tier.  You'll  see  him  there  behind  a  very  dark 
lady — I  suppose  Madame  Moretto." 

"  You  don't  mean  that  he  has  had  the  effront- 
ery to  come  here,  when  he  knew  his  Avife  was  in 
New  York  ?" 

"  Why  not  ?  They're  divorced,  and  Lamport! 
has  cheek  enough  for  anything.  I  don't  think 
they  are  staying  in  New  York  City,  however." 

Mrs.  Hurlstone,  whose  glass  had  been  riveted 
on  the  box  during  this  speech,  exclaimed, 

"  It  is  the  prince,  sure  enough  !  Well,  I  never 
heard  anything  like  it — flying  in  the  face  of  public 


92  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

opinion  like  that !  Of  course,  every  one  will  cut 
him.  And  what  a  coarse-looking  creature  Ma- 
dame Moretto  is  !  What  on  earth  brings  them 
here?" 

"  I  am  sure  I  don't  know.  Perhaps  it  has  some- 
thing to  do  with  the  settlement  of  the  princess's 
money." 

"Why,  it  must  all  have  been  settled  when 
she  married.  You  don't  suppose  she  would  give 
him  anything  more?  He  has  got  enough  out 
of  her  already.  Besides,  I  thought  this  Madame 
Moretto  was  also  very  rich  ?" 

"So  I  conclude.  He  wouldn't  have  married 
her  without." 

"  He  is,  then,  actually  married  to  her." 

"Why,  certainly,  or,  if  not  married,  going 
to  be." 

"  Upon  my  honor  !  It  is  a  pretty  story  alto- 
gether. We  pride  ourselves  upon  our  society 
being  very  free  from  scandals ;  but  if  people  will 
marry  foreigners — "  then  she  corrected  herself — 
"I  mean  foreign  princes,  who  are  mere  fortune- 
hunters,  what  can  one  expect?" 

Grace,  meantime,  had  looked  at  the  rivals  in  this 
pitiful  story,  and  had  come  to  the  conclusion  that 
Madame  Moretto's  was  no  common  face.  She 
was  handsome,  though  young  no  longer,  but  the 
strength  of  the  countenance,  more  than  its  beauty, 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  93 

made  it  remarkable.  A  woman,  this,  to  exercise 
a  fateful  hold,  probably,  over  any  man  on  whom 
she  had  fastened  —  certainly  over  a  weak  one. 
As  Grace  looked  at  those  eyes,  burning  like  lamps 
in  the  depths  of  two  dark  caverns,  at  the  proud 
and  splendidly  poised  head  and  ample  bust,  and 
then  at  the  figure  and  face  of  the  deserted  wife, 
she  read  at  once  how  unequal  the  contest  must 
have  been.  Coarse?  Well,  she  might  be  coarse, 
but  it  was  the  coarse  strength  of  Tintoretto,  as 
compared  with  the  faded  feebleness  of  Guido. 

The  curtain  had  now  fallen  upon  the  second  act, 
and  Mordaunt,  with  the  other  men,  had  left  the 
box,  to  visit  their  acquaintances  and  make  room 
for  those  who  wished  to  pay  their  respects  to  Mrs. 
Hurlstone  and  inspect  the  English  beauty  more 
closely.  Among  these  was  a  powerfully  built 
young  man,  of  medium  height,  with  a  fine  resolute 
face  and  a  delightfully  frank  smile.  His  general 
bearing  and  ease  of  manner,  which  never  touched 
the  confines  of  familiarity — that  snare  of  the  un- 
derbi'ed — would  have  distinguished  him  in  any  so- 
ciety. He  was  greeted  with  cordiality  by  mother 
and  daughter,  and  introduced  to  Miss  Ballinger  as 
Mr.  Caldwell.  He  repeated  her  name,  as  all  Ameri- 
cans do,  on  being  presented. 

"  Mr.  Caldwell  does  not  honor  New  York  very 
much,"  explained  Mrs.  Hurlstone,  with  a  smile. 


94  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  We  spoil  him  so  much  here,  whenever  he  comes, 
that  he  thinks  it  best  to  make  himself  precious." 
"Quite  true,"  said  the  young  fellow,  showing 
the  whitest  teeth  in  the  world  under  his  incipient 
black  moustache.  "  It  is  only  coming  here  very 
seldom  that  makes  me  tolerated,  I  know.  I  am 
a  grub,  an  earth-worm,  who  is  out  of  place  among 
the  butterflies." 

"  What  nonsense  !"  exclaimed  Miss  Hurlstone. 
"You  know  quite  well  that  you  despise  us  butter- 
flies. You  prefer  being  a  grub  in  those  horrid 
mines  all  the  time,  and  won't  come  out  of  your 
chrysalis.  It's  too  Bad  !" 

"  That  is  all  very  well,  Miss  Hurlstone,  but  how 
would  the  butterflies  ever  exist  but  for  the  state 
of  grubdom?  Perhaps  I  shall  burst  my  chrysalis 
some  day,  and  flutter  up  and  be  a  giddy  old  but- 
terfly, but  I  am  afraid  you  will  have  nothing  to 
say  to  me  then." 

"Nothing!"  said  the  young  lady,  decisively; 
"  if  you  will  not  when  you  may,"  and  the  battle- 
dore and  shuttlecock  of  chaff  went  on,  while  Mrs. 
Hurlstone,  who  had  been  sweeping  the  house  with 
her  opera-glass,  said  to  Grace, 

"  Who  are  the  people  whose  box  Sir  Mordaunt 
is  in  ?" 

Grace  felt  sure  Mrs.  Hurlstone  knew. 

"  Mrs.  Flynn  and  Miss  Clayton.  Have  you  never 
met  them  ?" 


A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY  95 

"Oh,  I  believe  I  have  met  them,  but  they 
are  not  in  our  set.  I  fancy  they  are  from  Ken- 
tucky." 

"  There  is  no  objection  to  that,  is  there  ?"  asked 
Grace,  with  apparent  innocence.  "  If  Kentucky 
can  produce  such  pretty  women,  I  congratulate 
Kentucky." 

"Pretty,  yes — but  such  style  !  You  English, 
my  dear  Miss  Ballinger,  are  so  very  odd.  You 
take  up  people  that  we  should  never  know ! 
You  do  that  all  the  time  in  England.  We  hear 
of  such  extraordinary  people  being  received  there. 
It  does  seem  so  strange  to  us." 

Grace  recognized  some  truth  in  what  Mrs.  Hurl- 
stone  said.  Probably,  if  she  were  American,  she 
would  feel  much  as  Mrs.  Hurlstone  did.  But 
she  felt  sure  these  young  women  were  quite  harm- 
less ;  they  had  amused  her  ;  in  a  certain  way  she 
had  liked  them  ;  she  was  too  loyal  to  give  them 
up.  So  when  Mrs.  Hurlstone  followed  up  her  re- 
mark with,  "  Do  tell  me  where  you  made  Mrs. 
Flynn's  acquaintance  ?"  Grace  replied,  "  At  a  din- 
ner your  friend,  Mr.  Sims,  gave  us  at  Delmoni- 
co's.  Is  there  any  reason  why  he  should  not  have 
asked  them?" 

"  Oh,  no  reason  exactly — except  that,  as  a  man 
of  the  world,  he  ought  to  have  known  they  were 
not  the  kind  of  people  you  ought  to  meet  as 


96  A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY. 

good  specimens  of  New  York  society.  I  am  sorry 
you  should  meet  any  but  our  best  people." 

Grace  checked  the  question,  "What  are  the 
best? — the  richest?"  which  rose  to  her  lips,  and 
said, 

"  Mr.  Sims  thought  we  should  be  more  enter- 
tained by  meeting  some  American  types,  such  as 
we  have  not  seen  in  England,  and  he  was  right. 
Miss  Clayton,  especially,  amused  us  both  very 
much." 

"  We  don't  like  our  English  friends  to  be 
amused  in  that  way,"  said  Mrs.  Hurlstone,  with 
trenchant  emphasis. 

"  Dear  Mrs.  Hurlstone,  if  every  one  were  alike, 
the  world  would  be  very  dull.  A  little  originality 
is  so  delightful.  I  want  to  see  as  many  different 
types  as  I  can  in  going  through  the  States.  I 
don't  think  the  worse  of  people  for  not  having 
the  manners  I  have  been  used  to.  Their  manners 
are  good  for  them,  as  mine  are  for  me." 

"  Forgive  me  for  saying  that  that  is  all  non- 
sense, Miss  Ballinger.  There  is  but  one  code  of 
good  manners,  all  the  world  over.  You  will  go 
back  to  England,  and  quote  these  people,  and  say 
that  is  the  way  Americans  behave.  You  know 
you  will !" 

"  Some  Americans — not  all,"  replied  Grace, 
calmly.  "And  why  not?  What  is  the  use  of 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  97 

blinking  the  truth  ?  There  are  differences — you 
can't  deny  it — and  I  want  to  see  them  all.  The 
New-Ensrlanders,  about  whom  I  have  read  so 

O  r 

much,  the  warm  Southerners,  the  wild  Western- 
ers, I  know  I  shall  find  them  all  interesting  in 
their  different  ways.  I  don't  want  only  to  see 
the  smart  conventional  people.  I  have  plenty  of 
them  at  home." 

Here  some  one  entered  the  box,  and  Caldwell 
rose.  Then,  approaching  Grace,  he  said, 

"  I  believe  my  mother  has  taken  the  liberty  of 
writing  to  you  to-night,  Miss  Ballinger.  She 
knew  your  father  quite  well  when  he  was  over 
here,  and  would  like  to  make  your  acquaintance, 
but  did  not  like  to  call  without  writing  to  explain 
why.  We  shall  be  only  a  short  time  in  New 
York,  but  my  mother  hopes  she  may  see  you." 

"  Certainly.  I  shall  be  charmed.  If  she  will 
appoint  any  hour  I  will  be  at  home,  or  call  on 
her." 

"I  will  tell  her.  She  thought,  perhaps — but 
no.  She  has  written,  and  I  will  not  forestall  her 
note.  I  shall  have  the  pleasure  of  meeting  you 
to-morrow  night  at  Mr.  Gunning's  party.  Good- 
night." 

He  bowed.  She  extended  her  hand.  "  Do  not 
forget  my  message."  Then,  when  he  had  left 
the  box,  she  said  to  her  hostess,  "  What  a  charm- 
7 


98  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERT 

ing  face  that  young  man  has !  So  frank,  and 
manly,  and  straightforward.  Who  is  he  ?" 

"  His  mother's  only  son.  The  father  died  two 
years  ago,  and  left  great  mining  operations  in 
a  state  that  required  very  active  and  constant 
supervision.  This  boy — as  he  was  then — under- 
took it  all,  worked  like  a  slave,  and  showed  great 
cleverness,  great  tact  and  judgment,  I  am  told, 
in  dealing  with  the  men,  who  all  adore  him,  I 
hear.  He  lives  there,  in  Colorado,  almost  en- 
tirely, with  his  mother  and  a  young  sister,  and 
resists  all  temptations  to  come  to  New  York,  un- 
less business  brings  him.  It  is  most  extraordi- 
nary." 

"  It  is  admirable.  And  his  mother — is  she  as 
nice  as  he  ?" 

"  I  don't  know  her.  She  never  goes  into  soci- 
ety here.  She  devotes  herself  to  the  education  of 
her  daughter,  I  believe,  and  to  making  a  com- 
fortable home  for  her  son." 

But  the  third  act  had  now  begun,  and  with  it 
Mr.  Gunning's  fluid  vacuity,  which  played  with 
a  mild  spray  down  Miss  Ballinger's  back  for  the 
remainder  of  the  evening. 


CHAPTER  VII 

THIS  was  what  the  post  brought  Grace  the  next 
morning  : 

"My  DEAR  Miss  BALLINGER,* — I  hope  to  call  on  you 
to-morrow ;  but  I  wish  first  to  explain  who  I  am.  My 
husband  was  well  acquainted  with  Sir  Henry  Ballinger, 
and  he  was  our  guest  while  in  the  United  States.  I  am 
now  a  widow,  living  almost  entirely  in  Colorado  with 
my  son,  though  I  have  a  house  here.  I  do  not  go  into 
New  York  society,  and  fear  I  can  be  of  little  use  to 
you  during  my  short  stay,  but  if  you  and  your  brother 
have  a  spare  evening  and  would  dine  quietly  with  me 
I  would  try  and  get  one  or  two  pleasant  friends  to  meet 
you.  Later  on,  if  you  are  going  West,  it  would  give  me 
real  pleasure  to  offer  you  and  Sir  Mordaunt  such  hospi- 
tality as  we  can  in  our  wild  home  in  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains. Should  you  not  be  at  home  to-morrow,  perhaps 
you  will  kindly  write  and  say  if  I  am  fortunate  enough 

*  By  the  Americans  it  is  considered  more  formal,  by 
the  English  more  familiar,  to  begin  with  "My."  I  am 
surprised  to  find  my  friend,  Mr.  Marion  Crawford,  assert- 
ing precisely  the  reverse  in  his  "American  Politician." 
I  can  only  refer  this  divergence  of  opinion  to  the  expe- 
rience of  the  general  reader. 


100  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

to  find  you  both  disengaged  any  evening.     All  are  the 
same  to  me.  Yours  sincerely, 

"  JOANNA  CALDWELL." 

"Jem"  Gunning's  party  that  night  was  a  great 
success.  He  had  done  a  good-natured  thing  by 
inviting  Ferrars,  whom  he  scarcely  knew,  but  had 
interchanged  a  few  words  with  on  board  ship, 
and  had  subsequently  met  at  the  Ballingers'. 
Ferrars  was  their  friend ;  he  had  greatly  admired 
Carmencita's  public  performances,  and  he  had  ex- 
pressed a  desire  to  see  her  in  private,  hence  the 
invitation.  Of  course  all  the  very  "  smartest"  of 
New  York  society  were  there,  including  the  Hurl- 
stones  and  Mrs.  Van  Winkle,  and  besides  these 
two  or  three  artists  justly  supposed  to  be  more 
in  touch  with  the  wayward,  capricious  dancer, 
who,  it  was  said,  required  the  enthusiasm  of  Bo- 
hemia to  stimulate  her  efforts.  Before  a  cold, 
fashionable  circle  she  had  been  known  to  be  a 
failure.  They  had  arranged  the  beautiful  pict- 
ure-gallery added  by  the  late  Mr.  Gunning  to  his 
fine  mansion  so  that  the  dancer  should  have  a 
little  stage  to  herself  at  one  end,  backed  by  tall 
folding  screens  of  Cordova  leather.  The  electric 
light  fell  full  upon  this,  while  it  was  subdued  in 
the  rest  of  the  gallery.  The  whole  effect  of  the 
beautifully  -  dressed  women,  mostly  young,  not 
overcrowded,  but  seated  in  groups  with  their 


A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  101 

cavaliers,  against  the  rich  background  of  pictures, 
was,  in  itself,  a  little  tableau. 

Before  Carmencita  arrived  the  Hungarian  band 
played,  and  people  wandered  about,  some  to  look 
at  the  pictures  (which  were  all  modern  French), 
some  to  the  refreshment-room  adjoining.  Then, 
when  it  was  announced  that  the  dancer  and  her 
accompanying  band  of  guitars  had  arrived,  the 
guests  were  arranged  in  semicircles  of  chairs  ; 
and,  there  being  plenty  of  room  for  all,  the  men 
were  not  relegated  to  doorways,  or  flattened  up- 
right against  the  wall,  as  is  generally  the  case  in 
London.  The  band  of  guitars  seated  themselves, 
and  began  thrumming  a  bolero  with  wonderful 
spirit  and  a  body  of  sound  that  was  surprising 
from  such  poor  insti'uments.  In  the  midst  of 
this  a  young  woman  entered  from  a  side  door. 
She  was  dressed  in  white  and  gold,  and  wore  a 
white  lace  mantilla  over  her  head.  She  was  nei- 
ther pretty  nor  ugly,  a  common  type  of  Span- 
iard, and  her  movement  as  she  walked  was  swag- 
gering. She  was  greeted  by  a  great  clapping  of 
hands,  which  the  artists  led.  She  acknowledged 
this  by  an  awkward  and,  as  it  seemed  to  Grace, 
a  surly  salute.  Then  she  sat  down,  with  her  feet 
apart,  a  fan  in  one  hand,  the  other  lying  in  her 
lap,  the  palm  upwards.  Her  eyes  looked  dead, 
her  whole  face  dull  and  expressionless.  Could 


102  A  VOYAGE   OF  DISCOVERY 

this  be  Carraencita?  Why,  the  woman  was  not 
even  graceful !  And  the  smart  ladies  who  saw  her 
for  the  first  time  whispered,  "  So  badly  dressed  ! 
Hair  so  blowzy,  and  frock  gathered  so  fully  over 
the  hips  that  it  makes  them  look  ever  so  much 
too  large !" 

Ferrars  had  a  chair  immediately  behind  Grace. 

"  Is  it  possible  that  this  is  the  dancer  all  the 
artist  world  rave  about  ?"  she  asked. 

"  Wait." 

"  I  can't  fancy  that  any  agility  can  compensate 
for  the  lack  of  grace  and  charm,"  she  insisted. 

"  Wait,"  he  again  repeated.  "  If  you  are  not 
a  convert  before  ten  minutes  are  over  write  me 
down  an  ass." 

The  guitars  had  ceased  their  little  prelude. 
They  were  chattering  to  each  other.  The  leader's 
head  was  turned  away.  He  had  not  once  glanced 
at  Carmencita  since  she  entered.  Now,  however, 
he  revolved  upon  his  stool,  struck  a  chord,  look- 
ing down  as  he  screwed  up  one  string  ;  then 
raised  his  eyes.  They  met  hers.  It  was  like  the 
falling  of  a  spark  upon  some  explosive  substance. 
Her  whole  face  was  illuminated.  She  flung  away 
her  mantilla,  and  rose  transformed,  as  the  guitars 
struck  up  once  more.  The  genius  of  her  art 
had  now  hold  of  her,  and  went  impatiently  quiv- 
ering through  her  frame.  Her  feet  tapped  the 


A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  103 

ground ;  her  arms  and  hands  —  those  apathetic 
hands  —  were  lifted  with  a  sort  of  exultant  pas- 
sion ;  she  drew  herself  proudly  up,  and  her  bolero 
began. 

Considered  merely  as  dancing,  probably  many 
of  the  spectators  had  witnessed  more  wonderful 
performances.  It  was  the  dramatic  force,  the 
vivid  intensity  of  every  movement,  that  distin- 
guished it  from  any  ordinary  Terpsichorean  feat. 
Without  being  what  is  understood  as  pantomimic, 
the  little  dance  told  its  story  as  no  dance  of  the 
kind  has  ever  done  before.  When  she  sprang 
forward  with  that  defiant  audacity,  bent,  swayed, 
flung  her  body  back  till  it  seemed  as  though  her 
head  would  touch  the  floor,  her  eyes  appeared  to 
flash  fire,  her  hands  and  wrists  in  their  delicate 
and  flexible  intonations  played  through  the  whole 
gamut  of  passionate  emotion  ;  they  spoke  with  an 
eloquence  that  was  not  to  be  resisted.  It  was  no 
longer  a  woman  dancing — it  was  a  creature  pos- 
sessed by  some  demoniac  influence,  struggling, 
supplicating,  conquered,  swept  like  a  leaf  before 
the  wind  in  a  series  of  gyrations  so  rapid  and 
astounding  that, 'when  she  sank  to  the  earth,  the 
spectators  gasped  with  almost  a  sense  of  relief, 
amid  the  storm  of  applause  that  arose. 

She  smiled  for  the  first  time  ;  then  the  light 
faded  from  her  eyes,  and  she  swaggered  back  to 


104  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

her  seat,  the  same  awkward,  lumpish-looking  peas- 
ant she  had  been  ere  the  flame  had  been  ignited. 

"Well?  What  do  you  say?"  asked  Ferrars, 
from  behind  Grace's  shoulder. 

"Nothing.     She  has  taken  away  my  breath." 

The  flood-gates  were  burst.  "  Tremendous  ! 
Astonishing  !  Immense  !  Did  you  ever  see  any- 
thing like  that  bend  of  body  ?  There  is  no  one 
can  touch  her  !"  and  so  on  poured  the  tide  of 
frothy  admiration  round  the  room. 

"They  see  nothing  but  an  exhibition  of  agil- 
ity," said  Ferrars.  "You  see  something  more 
than  this,  I  am  sure  ?" 

"Yes."  She  waited  a  minute,  then  added, "It 
is  a  physical  illustration  of  Owen  Meredith's  line, 
'  Genius  does  what  it  must.  Talent  does  what  it 
can.'  She  could  no  more  help  dancing  as  she  does 
than  a  tornado  can  help  blowing.  I  am  not  quite 
sure  that  I  like  a  tornado.  I  think  I  prefer  a 
gentler  breeze.  But  one  is  carried  away  by  the 
tempest  while  it  lasts." 

"  And  what  do  you  want  more  ?  To  be  *  car- 
ried away,'  even  for  a  few  minutes,  and  by  a 
dancing-girl,  is  rare  in  life.  I  tell  you  that  this 
creature  has  an  individuality  that  is  all  her  own. 
I  have  seen  much  more  wonderful  dancing  in 
Spain,  but  never  any  that  had  this  curious  his- 
trionic character." 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  105 

"  You  have  been  in  Spain  much  ?" 

"  Yes,  at  one  time.  I  hope  Qarmencita  will 
sing  some  national  airs  presently.  She  never  does 
so  in  public.  I  hear  her  singing  and  dancing  to- 
gether are  extraordinary.  Get  our  host  to  ask 
her." 

There  was  a  movement  at  the  door  at  this  mo- 
ment, and  a  fat,  fair  woman,  with  a  sweet  smile, 
laden  with  jewels,  entered.  Gunning  went  for- 
ward with  his  mother,  and  then  the  magnificent 
George  Ray  strode  down  the  room  and  greeted 
the  new  guest  with  effusion. 

"  Who  is  that  ?  They  are  going  to  bring  her 
up  to  you,"  said  Ferrars. 

"It  is  the  Princess  Lamperti.  I  dare  say  you 
have  heard  her  story.  She  has  just  divorced  her 
husband." 

They  approached,  and  the  soft,  cushiony-look- 
ing woman,  with  so  complacent  an  expression 
that  it  was  impossible  to  believe  that  her  domes- 
tic sorrow  had  eaten  deeply  into  her  soul,  was 
presented  to  Miss  Ballinger.  As  the  honored 
guest  of  the  evening,  whom  every  one  was  asked 
to  meet,  all  presentations  were  made  to  her. 

The  princess  began  at  once, 

"I  saw  you  last  night  at  the  opera,  Miss  Bal- 
linger, and  I  was  glad  to  think  I  was  to  meet  you 
to-night.  Your  face  was  very  sympathique  to 


106  A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY 

me  ;  I  am  very  susceptible  to  fresh  impressions 
— too  much  so.  And  you  ?"  But  she  ran  on 
without  waiting  for  an  answer.  "How  do  you 
like  Carmencita?  Wonderful,  isn't  she?  But, 
for  me,  I  like  something  more — more  ondoyante 
— more — more — how  shall  I  say — ethereal  ?" 

The  princess,  though  pure  American,  had  many 
foreign  terms  of  speech,  and  was  much  addicted 
to  foreign  words. 

"  Certainly  she  is  not  ethereal,"  smiled  Grace. 
"And  yet  she  seems  a  sort  of  double-natured 
creature — a  stupid  peasant  and — " 

"A  Paphian  priestess!"  murmured  Mrs.  Van 
Winkle,  who  stood  near,  with  her  head  dressed 
like  a  cockatoo.  "It  is  like  the  frenzied  orgies 
that  used  to  wind  up  some  of  their  interesting 
rites  !  That  intoxicating  twirl  of  hers  at  the  end 
— it  is  realism  in  extremis." 

This  sounded  to  Grace  very  like  nonsense,  but 
she  was  quick  enough  to  respond, 

"  The  extremis  I  suppose  are  her  head  and  her 
toes  ?  They  were  so  mixed  I  could  not  quite  tell 
for  a  moment  which  was  which." 

"  You  know,"  said  the  princess,  "that  the  leader 
of  the  guitars  is  her  husband  ?  She  adores  him." 

"Indeed?  That  is  interesting.  I  saw  that  he 
lit  her  by  a  look,  as  some  people,  they  say,  light 
gas  by  the  electricity  in  their  fingers." 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  107 

"  I  am  one  of  the  light-fingered  gentry,"  laughed 
George  Ray,  fatuously.  "  In  cold  weather  I  can 
always  do  it,  I  am  so  strongly  charged  with  elec- 
tricity." 

"You  are  such  a  large  battery,  such  a  mighty 
machine,  that  we  are  ablaze  when  you  come  near 
us,"  said  Mrs.  Van  Winkle,  with  a  satirical  smile. 
Then  she  added,  reflectively,  as  she  opened  and 
shut  her  fan,  "  Fancy  being  lit  by  your  own  hus- 
band !  How  curious !  Though  once,  long  ago, 
perhaps — "  Then  she  broke  off. 

"  Ah  !  They  are  so  young — all  is  new  !"  sighed 
the  princess.  "  One  asks  one's  self, '  Will  it  con- 
tinue?' Foreign  natures  are  so  volages.  They 
know  not  what  fidelity  means.  And,  more  than 
all,  Italians  and  Spaniards — ah !  They  are  a  dread- 
ful people,  as  I  have  good  reason  to  know !" 

Grace,  generally  ready  with  her  tongue,  felt 
rather  at  a  loss  what  to  say.  Mrs.  Van  Winkle 
saved  her. 

"  It  must  be  very  unexciting,  dancing  to  your 
own  husband.  Herodias's  daughter  would  not 
have  won  the  Baptist's  head  under  those  circum- 
stances. I  feel  like  Marguerite  de  Valois,  when 
she  was  thirsty,  and  drank  a  cup  of  cold  water, 
and  exclaimed,  'Ah !  If  it  were  only  a  sin  !'  The 
legitimate  thing  is  always  so  very/«f?e." 

It  was  astonishing  the  pains  this  lady  took  to 


108  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

try  and  give  a  false  impression  of  herself.  But  it 
was  all  thrown  away  on  Grace. 

"  My  aunt  would  have  gratified  Marguerite  de 
Valois,"  she  said.  "  She  would  have  told  her  a 
cup  of  cold  water  was  a  sin — a  deadly  sin  against 
hygienic  laws.  It  is  an  idee  fixe  with  her." 

Then  Mrs.  Van  Winkle  moved  on,  bowing  her 
cockatoo-like  crest  to  right  and  left ;  and,  as  the 
princess  had  taken  her  seat,  Grace  turned  to  make 
some  remark  to  Ferrars,  but  she  saw  to  her  sur- 
prise that  he  had  left  his  chair,  nor  could  she  de- 
tect his  head  anywhere. 

Carmencita  now  danced  an  affondangodo,  fol- 
lowed by  a  sequidillo,  with  increasing  energy,  ter- 
minating by  explosions  similar  to  that  which  had 
roused  such  enthusiasm  in  her  first  dance. 

Young  Caldwell  took  the  vacant  chair  behind 
Grace.  After  the  usual  questions,  as  to  whether 
she  cared  for  the  dancing,  he  said, 

"  My  mother  was  so  delighted  to  get  your  note. 
She  is  glad  that  Sir  Mordaunt  and  you  can  dine 
with  us.  Have  you  met  Bagshot,  our  great  law- 
yer and  wit?  We  hope  to  get  him  and  one  or 
two  others  to  meet  you.  But  it  will  be  quite  a 
small  party.  You  won't  mind  ?" 

"  Oh  !  I  shall  like  it  so  much  better.  Every 
one  is  most  hospitable  to  us  here,  but  I  prefer 
small  parties  to  large  ones.  Mr.  Gunning,"  she 


109 

called  to  her  host,  who  was  passing,  "  do  ask 
Carmencita  to  sing  while  she  dances.  I  am  told 
that  is  the  most  charming  thing  she  does." 

"Why,  yes  !  Michael  Angelo  Brown  will  get 
her.  He  speaks  Spanish,  you  know,  and  under- 
stands how  to  tackle  her." 

He  was  going,  when  the  princess  stopped  him. 

"And  after  that,  if  you  can  induce  her  hus- 
band to  dance  with  her  —  he  is  difficult  to  per- 
suade, sometimes,  but  if  you  can  only  succeed — 
it  is  charming!  so  entrain!  And  there  is  some- 
thing in  their  being  husband  and  wife  so  —  I 
don't  know  what  !  You  understand  ?  Ah  ! " 
She  heaved  a  deep  sigh. 

The  young  man  looked  as  though  he  did  not 
in  the  least,  but  he  hurried  off  to  find  the  artist 
ambassador  who  should  convey  his  request  to 
both  the  performers.  And,  pleased  with  the  fer- 
vor of  her  reception,  the  lady  consented,  so  far  as 
she  and  the  song  were  concerned.  It  was  a  long 
story  in  couplets,  threaded,  so  to  speak,  with 
dances.  The  precise  meaning  of  each  verse  re- 
quired some  knowledge  of  Spanish  to  understand, 
but  her  marvellous  play  of  countenance,  and  the 
variety  of  expression  in  that  low,  husky  voice, 
which  she  trod  with  all  the  subtlety  and  delicacy 
of  a  great  artist,  told  quite  enough.  This  perform- 
ance seemed  to  Grace  to  be  even  more  remarka- 


110  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

ble,  and  certainly  more  pleasing,  than  the  preced- 
ing ones.  When  it  was  finished,  she  looked  round 
once  more,  with  her  bright  enthusiasm,  to  try  and 
catch  Mr.  Ferrars's  eye,  but  he  was  nowhere  in 
sight.  All  she  discovered  was  Mordaunt  and  Miss 
Hurlstone  in  a  distant  corner,  where  she  had  seen 
them  more  than  an  hour  ago,  engrossed  in  each 
other's  conversation.  "Well !  Dear  Mordaunt  was 
an  out-and-out  flirt ;  of  course,  it  meant  nothing 
with  him.  It  was  to  be  hoped  the  girl  was  equally 
case-hardened. 

"Do  you  know,  Miss  Ballinger,"  said  Caldwell. 
"  I  am  afraid  I  like  this  singing  better  than  the 
opera  last  night.  I'm  not  worthy  of  that  gi'and 
music.  It's  such  an  awful  row." 

"  Which  you  tried  to  drown  with  the  sound  of 
your  own  voice,  I  dare  "say,"  laughed  Grace. 
"  Most  people  did.  Now  every  one  paid  devout 
attention  to  Carmencita.  Tbat  isn't  fair  to  poor 
Wagner,  is  it  ?" 

Here  Gunning  rushed  up.  "He  has  caved  in 
at  last !  He  has  consented  to  dance  with  her — 
but  only  after  a  regular  battle.  It  was  that 
funny  to  watch  'em.  Their  goings  on  together 
were  like  a  play,  they  were,  but  she  has  got  round 
him.  I  say,  Miss  Ballinger,  I  want  to  know  if 
you  and  your  brother  won't  come  out  to  Tux- 
edo on  Saturday  and  stay  till  Monday,  as  my 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  111 

guests.  It's  an  awfully  jolly  place,  and  I'll  get 
up  a  nice  party — just  the  right  set,  you  know — 
no  outsiders — if  you'll  come." 

"  You  are  very  good ;  but  it  is  impossible.  We 
are  engaged." 

"  What  ?  both  days  ?  Couldn't  you  come  for 
one?" 

"No.  I,  at  least,  am  engaged  both  days.  I 
can't  answer  for  my  brother." 

And  so,  after  the  little  dramatic  dance  of  co- 
quetry and  pursuit  and  capture  between  the  Span- 
ish husband  and  wife  was  gone  through,  the  even- 
ing came  to  an  end. 


CHAPTER 

THE  next  morning  Grace  sat  turning  over  the 
leaves  of  a  book  which  had  just  been  sent  her. 
The  elderly  author  had  been  presented  to  her 
the  evening  before,  and  had  promptly  sent  her 
his  "  Souvenirs,"  which  were  said  to  be  having 
a  great  sale,  especially  in  the  Far  West,  where  its 
axioms  of  etiquette  and  records  of  high  life  in 
New  York  were  accepted  with  unquestioning  rev- 
erence. A  smile  played  on  the  girl's  face,  culmi- 
nating now  and  again  in  a  burst  of  merriment  as 
her  eye  fell  on  such  passages  as  these : 

"  It  is  well  to  be  in  with  the  nobs,  who  are  born 
to  their  position  ;  but  the  support  of  the  swells  is 
more  advantageous,  for  society  is  sustained  and 
carried  on  by  the  swells  !" 

Grace  fairly  screamed  when  she  read  of  some 
man  who  was  supposed  to  have  been  in  fash- 
ionable English  life,  that  "He  was  in  with  all 
the  sporting  world — intimate  with  the  champion 
prize- fighter,  the  Queen's  pages,  TattersalFs,  and 
others!" 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  113 

She  had  just  come  to  this  passage  when  there 
was  a  knock  at  her  door,  and  in  response  to  her 
"  Come  !"  (in  America  the  invitation  is  confined 
to  that  monosyllable),  Mr.  Ferrars  was  announced. 

"Why  did  you  disappear  so  suddenly  last 
night?"  asked  Grace,  with  her  usual  indiscreet 
directness,  as  soon  as  they  had  shaken  hands.  "  I 
don't  believe  you  heard  Carmencita  sing,  after 
all." 

"No,  I  did  not.  There  was  some  one  there  I 
did  not  wish  to  meet.  I  had  to  go.  I  told  you 
New  York  society  and  I  would  never  agree.  It 
proved  so  last  night.  I  shall  not  try  the  experi- 
ment again.  I  shall  leave  New  York  to-morrow." 

"Is  it  not  a  pity  to  take  life  so  very  hard  as 
you  do  ?" 

"  It  is  life  that  took  me." 

"You  strike  me  as  treading  very  heavily  on 
it.  '  Glissez,  et  n'appuyez  pas '  is  such  a  wise 
motto." 

"I  see  you  have  Golightly's  'Souvenirs'" — he 
pointed  to  the  book  on  her  lap.  "Perhaps  you 
are  right.  I  suppose  the  career  of  that  veteran 
butterfly  proves  it.  I  suppose  if  I  had  been  born 
like  him  I  should  be  happier  than  I  am." 

"  Grace  opened  the  book,  and  read  this  passage 
aloud : 

" '  If  you  see  a  fossil  of  a  man,  shabbily  dressed, 


114  A   VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY 

it  is  better  to  cross  the  street  and  avoid  meeting 
him  !'  There  is  a  fitness  in  such  noble  senti- 
ments being  expressed  in  this  refined  language. 
I  fancy  I  hear  you  saying  that !" 

He  shrugged  his  shoulders. 

"  Golightly  is  the  natural  outcome  of  a  society 
that  is  built  solely  upon  wealth.  I  look  upon  that 
rubbish  as  the  most  salutary  lesson  our  people 
could  have  of  the  depth  of  degradation  to  which 
a  'leader  of  society,'  as  he  is  called,  may  sink." 

"  Oh !  but  he  is  a  joke,  you  know  ;  ask  any  one. 
It  is  absurd  to  judge  a  whole  community  by  one 
foolish  man." 

"I  am  glad  you  find  the  society  to  your  taste," 
he  returned,  dryly.  "  By  the  bye,  I  have  heard 
from  Mrs.  Courtly  to-day.  She  asks  if  I  know 
when  you  are  likely  to  be  in  Boston,  and  will  pay 
her  a  visit  at  her  country  place,  Brackly." 

"Mordaunt  has  made  no  plans  for  leaving  New 
York  at  pi*esent.  How  long  do  you  stay  in  Vir- 
ginia?" 

"  I  don't  know.  It  depends.  I  shall  not  return 
to  New  York  ;  but  I  shall  return  East  shortly, 
and  hope  to  be  with  Mrs.  Courtly  at  the  same 
time  you  are." 

"  I  shall  be  very  glad  if  you  are."  Then  she 
added,  with  a  smile,  "  You  will  not  object  to 
Boston  society?" 


A   VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY  115 

"  No,  I  shall  not.  Mrs.  Courtly  does  not  suffer 
fools  gladly.  You  will  not  be  dull  in  her  house." 

"I  am  never  dull  anywhere — certainly  not  here, 
where  I  have  found  plenty  to  interest  and  amuse 
me.  I  might  say  more  than  this,  but  I  am  afraid 
you  would  sneer." 

"Pray  go  on.     I  won't  sneer." 

"  I  have  found  something  to  respect  and  to  ad- 
mire, which  I  do  not  find  at  home — in  our  best  so- 
ciety. And  that  is,  a  much  higher  moral  standard." 

"How  so  ?  Not  in  public  affairs  ?  Not  in  rail- 
ways ?  Not  in  the  press  ?  Not  in  Wall  Street?" 

"  I  know  nothing  about  those  things.  I  speak 
of  what  comes  under  my  personal  observation. 
I  see  that  women,  and  even  men,  are  tabooed 
about  whom  there  is  any  open  scandal.  It  is  not 
so  with  us.  Nothing  short  of  divorce  shuts  the 
door  against  a  woman  of  position  who  sins ;  and 
as  to  a  man,  nothing  except  cheating  at  cards 
eeems  to  do  so." 

He  rose,  without  reply,  and  went  to  the  win- 
dow. At  the  same  moment,  Mordaunt  entered. 

"  Good  -  morning,  Ferrars.  Grace,  I  have  a 
note  from  that  good-natured  chap,  Gunning,  en- 
closing a  box  for  the  circus,  this  afternoon.  Will 
you  come  ?" 

"Is  the  box  our  very  own,  or  is  Mr.  Gunning 
coming  with  friends  ?" 


116  A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

"  He  says  he  may  drop  in — but  the  box  is  ours,  to 
fill  as  we  like,  only  it's  rather  late  to  get  any  one." 

"  Will  you  come,  Mr.  Ferrars?  And  I  will  tel- 
ephone to  ask  Mrs.  Caldwell  and  her  daughter." 

Ferrars  accepted ;  and  so,  a  few  minutes  later, 
did  the  ladies.  Soon  after  two  o'clock  the  whole 
party,  except  Gunning,  was  established  in  the 
great  arena,  to  witness  Barnum's  show  of  "Nero." 
The  vast  building  was  crowded.  Grace,  who  now 
met  the  Caldwell  ladies  for  the  first  time,  was 
charmed  with  them.  The  mother's  sweet,  frank 
face,  and  the  young  girl's  freshness  and  intelli- 
gence— an  intelligence  very  different  from  "the 
needle-like  sharpness  which  pricked  and  startled 
one,"  as  Grace  described  it,  in  May  Clayton  — 
she  was  equally  delighted  with  both.  Doreen 
Caldwell  was  not  yet  seventeen.  She  gave  the 
promise  of  being  a  very  pretty  woman  ;  at  pres- 
ent she  was  too  thin,  her  face  too  narrow,  and  her 
eyes  unduly  large  for  the  rest  of  the  features. 
She  was  strangely  quiet  for  an  American,  almost 
shy ;  but  then  her  bringing  up  had  been  different 
from  that  of  most  of  her  countrywomen,  without 
the  constant  excitement  and  restlessness  which 
seem  inseparable  from  a  home  education  in  most 
city  households.  She  had  an  abundance  of  the 
national  humor,  quick  perceptions,  and  a  keen  ca- 
pacity for  enjoyment ;  but  she  had  not  as  yet — if 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  117 

she  ever  would  acquire — that  particular  attraction 
in  the  eyes  of  most  Englishmen,  the  spontaneous 
up-bubbling  garrulity,  which  most  Englislucomm 
call  "  a  feverish  desire  to  be  prominent." 

Mordaunt  talked  chiefly  to  the  mother.  Grace 
saw  at  once  that  the  daughter  did  not  particular- 
ly attract  him — it  was  not  this  that  he  had  come 
out  into  the  wilderness  to  see.  Beatrice  Hurl- 
stone's  undisguised  encom*agement  and  capacity 
for  flirtation  treated  as  a  fine  art,  or  May  Clay- 
ton's audacious  drollery  was  much  more  to  his 
taste.  But  Ferrars  and  Grace  together  drew  Do- 
reen  out,  and  were  entertained  with  the  remarks 
of  this  child  of  nature,  as  yet  unblasee  by  the 
glitter  of  such  shows.  A  young  man  came  in  to 
visit  Mrs.  Caldwell,  whose  box  he  believed  it  to  be. 
She  introduced  him  to  Grace  as  Mr.  Alan  Brown. 
He  was  evidently  intimate  with  the  family.  The 
girl  greeted  him  with  a  frank  smile,  and  said, 

"  I  am  sure  you  have  never  seen  anything  better 
than  this  in  Europe.  Say,  have  you,  now  ?" 

"No,"  he  answered.  "Barnum  takes  the  cake 
for  shows.  It  isn't  a  very  grand  thing  to  take 
the  cake  for — but  it's  the  best  we  have  in  the 
dramatic  line." 

This  remark,  and  Mr.  Brown's  "English  ac- 
cent," gave  Grace  the  key-note  of  the  air  which 
persecuted  the  young  man's  life.  He  had  been 


118  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVER Y 

educated  at  Eton  and  Oxford,  and  had  returned  to 
business  in  New  York,  hating  his  present  existence, 
and  indisposed  to  find  pleasure  in  the  many  pleas- 
urable things  his  native  land  had  to  offer  him. 

"  I  am  sorry  for  him,"  said  Mrs.  Caldwell,  when 
he  had  left  the  box.  "  Alan  is  a  very  nice  fellow 
in  many  ways,  but  his  education  has  been  a  mis- 
take. His  father  is  very  rich — dry-goods,  you 
know — and  this  is  his  only  son.  As  he  naturally 
wishes  him  to  continue  the  business,  it  was  not 
fair  to  bring  him  up  with  all  the  tastes  and  hab- 
its of  your  leisure  class  in  England.  It  was  his 
mother's  fault.  He  hates  business,  and  he  hates 
New  York." 

Gunning  entered  just  then,  and  was  presented 
to  Mrs.  Caldwell. 

"You  live  near  the  Rockies,  don't  you?  I 
shot  six  bears  there  last  year.  It  was  great 
sport.  I  was  under  canvas.  But  to  live  there — 
Caldwell  must  find  it  awfully  slow." 

"My  son  has  work  there,  and  he  likes  the  life. 
He  enjoys  New  York  for  a  short  time,  but  he 
would  soon  tire  of  doing  nothing.  He  told  me 
what  a  charming  party  you  had  last  night,"  she 
added. 

"  Why,  yes.  It  was  a  success,  I  think — I  hope 
you  thought  it  went  off  well,  Miss  Ballinger? 
Oh  !  Thank  you.  It's  awfully  good  of  you  to  say 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  119 

BO.  Every  one  was  so  delighted  to  meet  you — 
and  Sir  Mordaunt.  Sorry  you  can't  come  to 
Tuxedo.  Quite  a  number  of  people  are  going 
there  on  Saturday.  You  are  going  to  the  ball  to- 
night, of  course?  And  have  you  cards  for  the 
Assembly  Ball  next  week?  That's  all  right. 
Talking  of  cards,  I  wish  you'd  tell  me  which  is 
the  correct  thing  in  London,  to  print  your  ad- 
dress on  the  right-hand  or  the  left-hand  corner  of 
your  card?  'Cause  it's  important  to  know." 

"  I  am  afraid  I  can't  tell  you.  I  never  thought 
about  it." 

"  Well,  now,  that's  curious.  We've  had  quite 
a  dispute  about  it  here.  I  say,  don't  you  want 
to  know  who  is  in  the  third  box  from  here — that 
handsome  woman  in  gray  ?  She's  Otero,  the  rival 
of  Carmencita — and  a  sight  better-looking  too — 
but  she's  not  the  fashion  like  the  other  is.  Fash- 
ion is  everything,  after  all,  ain't  it?  This  circus 
is  full  all  the  time.  Everybody  comes  here,  not 
that  they  care  for  it  very  much,  but  it's  the  thing. 
Pity  it's  so  big,  one  can't  see  across  the  house 
well."  Here  he  took  up  his  glass.  "  Why  !  I 
declare,  there's  Miss  Planter  and  her  mother ! 
They  must  have  arrived  from  Pittsburgh  yester- 
day. If  I'd  known  it,  I'd  have  asked  her  last 
night.  Didn't  you  meet  her  in  London  ?  Why, 
she  made  quite  a  stir  there — went  into  first-rate 


120  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERT 

society,  and  refused  a  lord,  I'm  told.  You  must 
be  introduced,  Sir  JVIordaunt.  She  is  a  real  belle, 
Clare  Planter  is.  If  you  like  to  come  right  away 
now,  I'll  present  you." 

So  Ballinger  rose,  laughing,  and  the  young  men 
lef-t  the  box.  On  his  return,  just  before  the  end 
of  the  performance,  Mordaunt  reported  that  the 
young  lady  was  charming,  the  prettiest  girl  he 
had  seen  since  he  landed,  lots  to  say  for  herself, 
and  veiy  nice.  "  A  sort  of  girl  you'll  like,  Grace. 
Been  in  England,  too." 

Grace  knew  what  that  meant.  They  trooped 
out  of  the  theatre,  Grace  on  Gunning's  arm,  Mrs. 
Caldwell  on  Sir  Mordaunt's.  Doreen  had  a  double 
body-guard:  Ferrars,  whose  arm  she  took  on  one 
side,  and  Alan  Brown,  who  had  appeared  again 
just  as  they  were  leaving,  on  the  other.  As  they 
reached  the  crowded  entrance  Grace  saw  a  sallow 
foreigner  in  front  of  them,  with  a  lady  on  his 
arm.  The  lady  turned  her  head — the  face  was  an 
unforgetable  one  ;  it  was  that  of  Madame  Moretto. 
There  was  a  block  at  the  door,  of  people  waiting 
for  their  carriages,  for  it  was  raining. 

"  Where  is  Doreen  ?  I  do  not  see  her,"  said 
Mrs.  Caldwell ;  but  a  moment  later  the  girl  ap- 
peared on  Mr.  Brown's  arm.  Then,  "  What  have 
you  done  with  Mr.  Ferrars  ?  I  thought  you  were 
with  him  ?" 


A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  121 

"So  I  was,  mother,  but  he  suddenly  dropped 
my  arm,  and  asked  me  to  excuse  him,  and  let 
Alan  take  me  to  the  carriage.  He  looked  so  odd, 
quite  ill,  I  thought." 

"  Certainly  Mr.  Ferrars  is  not  fit  for  New  York 
societ)r,"  thought  Grace  to  herself.  "I  don't  be- 
lieve he  was  ill  a  bit.  It  was  one  of  his  strange 
vagaries." 

The  ball  that  night,  at  one  of  the  greatest  and 
most  exclusive  houses  in  New  York,  will  be  best 
described  in  an  extract  from  Grace's  letter  to  her 
aunt,  written  the  following  day.  It  tells  better 
than  I  could  the  fresh  impressions  made  upon  her 
receptive  nature  by  the  scene,  the  habits,  and  the 
actors  in  that  drama  of  the  New  World  in  which 
she  was  now  taking  part. 

"  Thursday,  January  24tft. 

"We were  last  night  at  Mrs.  Thorly's ball.  Everything 
was  very  splendid,  the  house,  the  dresses,  the  diamonds, 
the  flowers,  everything  except  the  introduction  to  the/efc, 
by  which  I  mean  that  the  guests,  on  arrival,  had  to  struggle 
through  the  brilliant  crowd  in  order  to  reach  the  staircase, 
and  up  to  the  cloak-room  on  the  first  floor.  This  strange 
anomaly,  I  am  told,  is  almost  universal  here.  It  was 
snowing,  and  every  one  wore  'gums,'  to  protect  their 
thin  shoes.  The  men  were,  naturally,  muffled  in  ulsters  ; 
the  women  swathed  in  veils  and  fur  cloaks.  Anything 
more  incongruous  than  this  unsightly  procession,  forcing 
its  way  through  the  bare  shoulders  and  wreathed  heads  of 


122  A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY 

those  who  had  already  discarded  their  wraps  and  were 
scanning  each  new  arrival,  can  hardly  be  imagined.  The 
ordeal  of  running  the  gauntlet  through  this  crowd  was 
most  disagreeable  to  me.  I  should  not  have  minded  so 
much  if  I  had  been  impenetrably  veiled,  as  most  of  the 
women  were;  but  I  felt  as  if  the  snow-flakes  were  in  my 
hair,  and  my  cheeks  a-flame,  as  I  heard  people  whisper, 
'  That's  the  English  girl,  you  know.'  When  I  had  smoothed 
my  ruffled  feathers,  I  descended  with  Mordy,  and  we  made 
our  way  to  Mrs.  Thorly,  who  received  me  most  graciously. 
As  I  looked  round  I  was  really  dazzled  by  the  general — 
more  than  the  particular — beauty  of  the  women,  and  spe- 
cially by  their  toilettes.  No  one  of  them,  perhaps,  was 
really  beautiful ;  but  they  were  nearly  all  pretty,  and,  as 
a  whole,  better  dressed  than  any  collection  of  girls  I  ever 
saw.  I  had  on  that  frock  of  Mrs.  Mason's,  which  I  had 
only  worn  once  at  Grosveuor  House  ;  and  I  flattered  my- 
self I  looked  so  smart  till  I  saw  how  much  fresher  all  the 
dresses  round  me  were.  Well,  it  didn't  much  signify. 
There  was  a  time  when  I  should  have  been  vexed,  but 
now  I  don't  much  care.  The  married  women's  diamonds 
were  amazing  ;  many  of  them  were  tiaras,  which  I  under- 
stand is  an  importation  from  England  much  reprehended 
by  some.  '  What  business  have  republicans  with  crowns  ?' 
a  man  said  to  me.  I  replied  that  republicans  had  taken 
them  off  so  many  heads  that  I  did  not  suppose  they  at- 
tached any  importance  to  them  as  the  insignia  of  royalty. 
I  preferred  walking  about  and  watching  the  dancers  to 
dancing  much.  The  young  men  were  indulgent  with  me  ; 
they  showed  me  everything,  told  me  who  every  one  was, 
and  were  very  nice  and  kind.  Mordy  divided  his  at- 
tention between  Miss  Hurlstone — who  is  certainly  much 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  123 

taken  with  him — and  a  Miss  Planter,  a  new  beauty  just 
arrived.  She  was  the  handsomest  girl  there,  and  I  ad- 
mire her  more  than  any  one  I  have  seen.  There  is  char- 
acter in  her  fine,  fearless  eyes,  her  well-cut  mouth,  her 
firm,  erect  carriage.  She  is  more  like  a  married  woman 
than  a  girl,  and  her  very  costly  attire  strengthened  this  im- 
pression. Mordy  introduced  us.  Her  voice  is  peculiarly 
pleasant,  so  rich  and  low,  very  unlike  most  of  the  voices 
here.  She  has  a  few  American  turns  of  speech  (of  which 
she  is  quite  unconscious,  of  course,  for  her  great  desire, 
I  am  told,  is  to  be  thought  English),  but  no  twang,  not  the 
faintest  suspicion  of  one.  She  talked  of  all  the  people  she 
had  known  in  London  with  a  familiarity  which  was  amus- 
ing. An  English  girl  would  have  made  a  mess  of  it ;  but 
adaptability  is  essentially  an  American  feature.  She  had 
fallen  into  these  people's  lives,  for  the  time  being,  so  com- 
pletely that  she  may  be  said  to  have  assimilated  them. 
Of  course,  she  is  a  flirt ;  all  girls  here  are.  On  the  other 
hand,  married  women  are  not;  husbands  would  never 
stand  their  wives  'carrying  on'  as  they  do  all  over  the 
continent  of  Europe,  including  England.  We  theorize 
about  morality  ;  but  the  variable  laws  which  decree  how 
much  people  may  sin  before  they  are  excluded  from  socie- 
ty are  much  more  lax  with  us  than  in  New  York. 

4 '  The  supper  was  most  picturesque.  At  a  given  moment 
any  quantity  of  little  tables  were  brought  in  by  number- 
less servants  and  scattered  through  the  rooms,  and  at  these 
the  whole  of  the  guests  seated  themselves  and  were  served. 
The  feast  lasted  quite  an  hour,  during  which  there  was  an 
entire  cessation  from  dancing.  To  me  individually  this 
was  a  trial,  for  I  had  promised  Mr.  Gunning  to  go  to  sup- 
per with  him,  believing  it  would  be  an  affair  of  ten  minutes 


124  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

— I  scarcely  touch  supper,  as  you  know.  Instead  of  that, 
I  found  myself  wedged  between  him  and  a  man  I  did  not 
know  ;  and  Mr.  Gunning  was  absurd  enough,  and  tact- 
less enough,  to  choose  this  moment  to  propose  to  me. 
Can  you  imagine  a  more  irritating  position  ?  No  escape. 
When  I  declined  the  honor  he  did  me,  hot  cutlets  were 
being  handed  over  my  shoulder  ;  and  there  I  had  to  sit 
while  quails  and  lobster  salads,  creams  and  ices,  came  in 
slow  succession,  and  still  he  poured  out  his  persistent  non- 
sense !  I  was  so  angry  ;  I  could  have  boxed  his  ears. 

"January  25th. — Miss  Hurlstone  drove  me  out  this 
morning  in  her  pony-carriage.  Of  course,  we  discussed 
the  ball,  but  had  not  got  very  far  when  she  turned  round 
and  asked  if  I  admired  Miss  Planter.  I  replied, '  Yes,  very 
much.'  '  So  does  your  brother,1  she  remarked.  Then, 
after  a  pause,  '  Does  he  confide  in  you  much  ?'  I  was 
rather  taken  aback.  '  He  does  sometimes,  I  suppose,  not 
always.'  '  Has  he  ever  spoken  to  you  of  me  ?'  '  Yes,  two 
or  three  times. '  '  Do  you  think  he  likes  me  ?'  '  Certain- 
ly ;  why  should  he  talk  to  you  otherwise  ?  But  Mordaunt 
is  a  dreadful  flirt.  You  mustn't  take  anything  he  says 
seriously,  especially  here,  where  he  has  been  told  you  all 
expect  to  be  flirted  with,  and  attach  no  importance  to  it.' 
'Well,'  she  said,  as  she  flicked  her  ponies,  'if  he  thinks 
we  all  take  it  like  that,  he  is  mistaken — and  I  suppose, 
therefore,  the  less  I  see  of  him  the  better,  for  I  never  met 
any  one  I  liked  so  much.  That  is  just  the  truth,  Miss 
Ballinger,  and,  until  last  night,  I  fancied—  But  when  I 
saw  how  he  was  carrying  on  with  that  Planter  girl — they 
are  just  nobodies,  coals,  or  tallow,  or  something  from 
Pittsburgh — I  was  so  hurt  I  could  have  cried.  I  suppose 
you  think  it  very  undignified  of  me  to  own  it  ?  Mamma 
would  be  very  angry  if  she  knew  that  I  said  so  ;  but  it  is 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  125 

the  truth  !'  What  could  I  say  ?  I  tried  to  console  her  by 
the  assurance  that  Mordaunt  was  too  volage  to  settle  down 
with  Miss  Planter  or  Miss  any  one  else  just  at  present;  and 
though  I  doubt  if  this  carried  much  weight  with  it,  the 
girl's  worldly  common-sense,  so  at  variance,  according  to 
our  ideas,  with  this  expansiveuess  of  sentiment,  stopped 
her  from  saying  more.  I  have  given  you  the  dialogue,  as 
nearly  as  I  can,  in  the  very  words  used,  because  its  direct- 
ness— the  way  in  which  she  went  straight  to  her  point 
without  hesitation — struck  me  as  very  characteristic  of  the 
nation.  She  wanted  to  learn  something,  and  she  learned  it. 
Most  English  girls  would  have  died  sooner  than  have 
made  that  confession.  As  to  Mordy,  of  course,  none  of 
these  flirtations  mean  anything  ;  but  he  will  be  burnt  some 
day  if  he  goes  on  playing  with  fire.  Miss  Planter  is  really 
far  above  the  common  run.  As  I  looked  at  Miss  Hurl- 
stone's  pretty  face,  and  recalled  the  other's  fine  classical 
head,  I  could  not  be  surprised  at  Mordy's  transference  of 
his  admiration.  After  all,  if  American  girls  choose  to 
flirt  in  this  way,  and  encourage  men  without  any  intention 
of  marrying  them,  they  must  take  the  consequences  if  they 
are  sometimes  the  ones  to  suffer.  I  cannot  pity  Miss 
Hurlstone  very  much.  Some  of  the  men  here  I  like  great- 
ly. The  women  are  superior  in  superficial  qualities  ; 
they  have  more  leisure  to  give  to  them.  But  among  the 
men  not  devoted  solely  to  money-making,  among  those 
who  aim  at  raising  the  intellectual  tone  of  the  people,  I 
have  met  some  well  worth  cultivating.  Mordy's  friend, 
Mr.  Reid,  you  would  like — a  shrewd  head  for  business, 
with  brains  to  spare  for  other  things. 

"But  I  must  stop.    Good-night.    We  are  waiting  anxious- 
ly to  hear  when  you  think  you  may  be  able  to  join  us." 


CHAPTER  IX 

QUINTIN  FEURAKS  was  gone,  and  Miss  Ballin- 
ger  acknowledged  to  herself  that  she  missed  his 
visits  greatly.  His  conversation,  it  is  true,  aroused 
her  combativeness  as  no  one  else's  did  ;  but  then, 
no  one  interested,  and  at  the  same  time  puzzled 
her,  as  did  this  strange  man.  It  cannot  be  said 
that  she  thought  much  of  him  when  alone,  for 
her  mind  was  still  engrossed  with  the  image  of  a 
very  different  person,  between  whom  and  herself 
a  gulf,  wider  than  the  Atlantic,  had  been  fixed. 
But  in  the  human  procession  that  passed  daily  be- 
fore her  eyes,  no  figure  was  as  vivid  as  that  of 
Ferrars,  none  that  she  could  have  missed  as  she 
did  his.  Under  no  circumstances  could  she  have 
loved  this  man — his  nature  was  not  heroic.  And 
the  only  men  who  had  exercised,  or  could  by  any 
possibility  ever  exercise,  an  influence  on  her  life, 
had,  whether  rightly  or  wrongly,  seemed  to  her  as 
heroes.  For  Quintin  Ferrars  she  felt  very  sorry, 
but  no  respect.  His  existence  appeared  to  be  a 
wasted  one.  She  admired  his  intellectual  capac- 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  127 

ity;  his  very  strangeness  had  a  certain  attraction 
for  her  ;  the  knowledge  that  there  was  some  real 
cause  for  his  unhappiness,  though  she  was  igno- 
rant of  that  cause,  all  made  him  an  interesting 
person  in  her  eyes.  But  there  her  feeling  for 
him  stopped.  The  more  she  studied  his  charac- 
ter, the  more  she  felt  that  there  was  something 
which  evaded  her.  He  had  shirked  a  duty  ;  he 
had  not  fallen  in  a  fair  stand-up  fight  with  life — 
he  almost  acknowledged  as  much — and  it  is  not 
of  such  stuff  that  heroes  are  made. 

But  Grace  Ballinger  was  a  woman,  and  not 
above  a  woman's  weaknesses.  She  liked  appreci- 
ation— admiration — call  it  what  you  will  ;  and, 
though  possessed  of  no  craving  to  have  a  man 
always  at  her  feet,  the  constant  occupation — it 
might  almost  be  called  the  devotion — of  a  clever 

o 

and  original  one  was  certainly  agreeable  to  her. 
She  did  not  even  now  realize  all  that  this  meant 
to  Ferrars.  He  sought  her  as  he  did  no  one  else  ; 
but  his  reticence  as  to  his  own  feelings  on  every 
personal  subject  blinded  her  to  the  fact  that  she 
was  growing  to  be  of  paramount  importance  in 
his  scheme  for  the  future.  They  had  now  been 
nearly  a  month  in  New  York,  and  had  met  al- 
most daily,  yet  it  never  occurred  to  her  to  regard 
his  assiduity  in  a  very  serious  light.  Her  view  of 
it  was  that  he  found  an  intellectual  pleasure  in 


128  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

her  society,  nothing  more.  He  was  too  self-ab- 
sorbed in  brooding  over  past  troubles  to  feel  any 
longer  a  passionate  interest  in  any  one.  Mor- 
daunt,  standing  further  off,  discovered  what  she 
did  not.  We  cannot  see  the  object  accurately  that 
is  held  too  close  to  our  eyes. 

And  so  it  came  to  pass  that  when  he  bade  her 
good-by,  with  a  certain  rigidity  and  difficulty  of 
utterance,  she  expressed  her  sorrow  at  his  depart- 
ure with  more  than  her  usual  frankness. 

"  I  am  so  sorry  you  are  going.  I  hope  you  will 
try  and  be  at  Brackly  when  we  are  there." 

"Yes.  You  may  depend  on  that.  Mrs.  Court- 
ly will  write  to  me  ;  she  has  promised." 

"I  fancy  we  shall  not  be  there  beyond  the 
middle  of  February,  and  I  think,  from  what  my 
brother  said  yesterday,  he  means  to  go  to  Boston 
straight  from  here." 

Mordaunt  had  dropped  something  more  than 
this,  to  wit — that  Miss  Planter  was  a  friend  of 
Mrs.  Courtly's,  and  was  going  to  stay  at  Brackly 
in  February.  But  Grace  did  not  give  this  reason 
for  the  faith  that  was  in  her  as  regarded  her 
brother's  movements. 

"  I  hope  you  are  going  to  do  your  duty  as  a 
good  American  citizen,"  she  said,  smiling,  as  she 
shook  his  hand. 

"I  am  going  to  fulfil  the  law,  at  all  events," 
he  returned,  grimly.  And  then  he  departed. 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  129 

What-  an  odd  man  he  was,  to  be  sure  !  How 
difficult  it  was  to  understand  him  !  Perhaps  the 
explanation  of  it  was  that  the  lens  of  his  mental 
photographic  apparatus  was  ill-adjusted :  not  only 
were  the  shadows  too  black,  the  objects  themselves 
were  distorted  ;  and  the  neai'er  they  stood  in  rela- 
tion to  him,  the  more  they  were  out  of  focus. 

Mrs.  Van  Winkle's  party  that  evening  was  no 
compromise.  She  had  nailed  her  colors  fast  to 
the  staff  of  fashion  ;  and  literature,  save  in  her 
own  fair  person,  was  unrepresented.  Mr.  Sims, 
who  stood  on  the  borderland  of  the  two  worlds, 
and  the  young  painter,  Michael  Angelo  Brown,  at 
present  engaged  on  a  portrait  of  Mrs.  Van  Win- 
kle in  the  character  of  Diana,  with  a  crescent  on 
her  head  and  a  bow  in  her  hand — these  were  the 
pinches  of  salt  thrown  in  to  flavor  the  social 
compound,  with  a  regard  to  Miss  Ballinger's  ap- 
petite for  something  stronger  than  a  fashionable 
souffle.  It  is  true  that  bright  creature,  Mrs.  Sie- 
bel,  was  of  the  party,  whose  shrewd  perceptions 
and  ebullient  sense  of  fun  irradiated  any  circle. 
But  then,  in  Mrs.  Van  Winkle's  eyes,  she  was 
first  of  all  a  woman  of  fashion  ;  only  a  delightful 
human  being  afterwards.  For  Sir  Mordaunt,  Mrs. 
Van  Winkle  felt  herself  to  be  feast  enough  ;  but 
with  the  happy  confidence  of  a  woman  who  fears 
no  rivalry,  she  had  selected  two  pretty  units  of 
9 


130  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

the  "Four  Hundred"  to  add  brilliancy  to  the 
entertainment.  She  looked  unusually  well  her- 
self, in  pale  blue  velvet,  with  powdered  hair,  and 
pearls.  When  Grace  remarked  how  much  they 
became  her,  she  whispered, 

"  Diamonds  are  getting  so  vulgar  !  Look  at 
the  poor  dear  princess.  She  is  always  like  a  bad- 
ly-made blanc-mange,  but  to-night  she  looks  as  if 
she  had  been  upset  in  a  jeweller's  window,  and 
had  got  mixed  up  with  the  diamonds." 

For  the  Princess  Lamperti's  ample  white  form 
was  resplendent  with  jewels,  two  necklaces  defin- 
ing a  waist  which  it  would  have  taken  a  life- 
guardsman  to  encircle.  Not  wholly  unlike  a 
life  -  guardsman  was  Mr.  George  Ray,  who  was 
on  her  left,  while  the  host  sat  between  her  and 
Miss  Ballinger.  He  was  a  well-favored  gentle- 
man of  fifty,  with  extremely  good  manners,  and 
not  much  besides.  The  dinner  was  perfect,  and 
the  ingenuity  with  which  it  was  colored  gave 
rise  to  some  amusement,  of  the  thin,  obvious  kind 
which  any  one  can  enjoy.  The  table  was  covered 
with  forget-me-nots  growing  out  of  moss,  procured 
for  Mrs.  Van  Winkle  with  infinite  difficulty  at 
this  season.  The  candle-shades  were  pale  blue  ; 
the  bills  of  fare  were  printed,  as  were  the  names 
of  the  guests,  on  pale  blue  cards.  Of  course  the 
menu  began  with  Blue  Point  oysters.  Then  there 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  131 

was  a  Potaye  d  la  Mazarin,  having  an  occult 
reference  to  the  tint  associated  with  the  cardinal 
of  that  name.  This  was  followed  by  Truites  au 
bleu,  and  what  Mrs.  Van  Winkle  had  christened 
"  True-blue  Fillets  of  Salmon."  After  that  there 
came  a  compote  of  "blue-rock  pigeons,"  and  I 
know  not  what  other  birds  of  the  air,  and  entrees 
of  meat  which  had  been  re -christened  for  the 
nonce.  In  the  second  course  there  was  a  jelly 
of  blueberries,  I  remember,  and  finally  the  menu 
closed  with  &  fondu  au  cordon  bleu. 

On  the  other  side  of  Grace  was  Mr.  Sims.  He 
fired  his  little  shots  alternately  at  the  hostess,  the 
princess,  and  other  ladies  across  the  table,  break- 
ing up  the  tetes-d-tetes  with  the  laughter  which  fol- 
lowed his  assaults. 

"  I  never  saw  so  becoming  a  '  fit  of  the  blues ' 
as  your  dress,  Mrs.  Van  Winkle,"  he  declared. 

"  It  is  quite  too  sweet  of  you  to  say  so  ;  you 
don't  generally  pay  compliments." 

"  He  would  not  have  done  so  now  but  for  the 
temptation  of  the  pun,"  laughed  Mrs.  Siebel.  "  I 
wonder  he  did  not  get  in  something  about  '  blue 
stockings.' " 

"It  was  an  oversight,"  he  replied,  merrily. 
"Couldn't  you  have  concocted  a  dish  (au  bas- 
bleu?  Mrs.  Van  Winkle  ?" 

"  You  don't  suppose  I  did  not  think  of  it  ?    My 


132  A   VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY 

avoidance  of  that  opprobrious  term  was  deliber- 
ate. Literary  women  never  understand  the  art 
of  eating  ;  I  am  the  exception.  With  me  it  is  a 
fine  art.  Observe  the  combination  in  this  menu. 
The  sequence  of  flavors  is  as  delicately  felt  as 
the  juxtaposition  of  colors  on  Titian's  canvases." 

"You  mean  it  is  a  '  symphony  in  blue  '  ?" 

"Exactly.  You  think  you  are  making  an  epi- 
gram, Mr.  Sims.  You  are  uttering  the  simple 
truth.  There  are  no  harsh  discords  here.  You 
are  led  up  from  one  dish  to  another ;  you  may 
eat  straight  through  this  dinner.  You  will  find 
that  all  the  surprises  resolve  themselves,  like  the 
surprises  in  harmony." 

"  Great  Scot !"  cried  Mr.  Sims.  "  I  had  no  idea 
eating  was  allied  to  music,  as  well  as  to  painting ! 
It  only  remains  to  drag  in  poetry." 

"Oh  !"  interposed  Grace,  "she  requires  no  drag- 
ging. Does  not  she  step  in  of  her  own  accord  ? 
From  Homer  downwards  all  the  grand,  healthy 
old  poets  take  delight  in  the  pleasures  of  the  ta- 
ble. It  is  only  the  morbid,  attenuated  school  that 
feed  on  rose-leaves." 

"  That  reminds  me  of  the  '  Souls,'  that  exclu- 
sive society  of  esthetes  in  London  we  have  heard 
so  much  about,"  said  Mrs.  Van  Winkle.  "Are 
you  a  '  Soul,'  Miss  Ballinger  ?" 

Grace  laughed.  "  I  am  noJofTy,  but  I  am  not  a 
'  Soul '." 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  133 

"  I  should  like  to  be  one,"  sighed  her  hostess. 
"  But  must  I  abandon  all  the  pleasures  of  the 
flesh  to  be  admitted  to  this  spiritual  community?" 

"No;  some  female  'Souls'  are  very  corporeally 
active  —  a  sort  of  'Walkyre' — spirits  on  horse- 
back. They  ride  ;  they  hunt." 

"  In  couples  ?"  asked  the  hostess,  with  an  air 
of  infantine  innocence. 

"Only  misanthropes  like  doing  things  alone," 
returned  Grace,  with  a  smile.  "  I  am  sure  I 
don't." 

"  Nor  I !"  cried  Mrs.  Siebel. 

"  My  dear,  who  is  prepared  to  contradict  you  ?" 
Mrs.  Van  Winkle  played  with  a  morsel  of  jelly 
on  the  end  of  her  fork,  as  she  spoke.  "  We  all 
love  humanity  too  much.  Yes,  I  wish  I  were  a 
' Soul ' !" 

"  Well !"  said  Sims,  reflectively,  with  a  funny 
twitch  of  his  mouth,  "you  fence  beautifully,  and 
I  have  seen  you  da-nce  a  pas  seul — two  recom- 
mendations, I  believe,  to  Souldom."  Then,  turn- 
ing to  the  large  lady,  who  certainly  looked  as  if 
she  could  neither  fence  nor  dance  a  pas  seul,  he 
continued,  "And  you,  princess,  what  do  you  say? 
Do  you  feel  like  being  a  'Soul'?" 

The  princess  paused,  and  looked  grave,  before 
she  replied, 

"I  don't  quite   know  what  it  all  means,  Mr. 


134  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVEKY 

Sims ;  but  if  it  has  anything  to  do  with  ghosts, 
and  visions,  and  second  sight,  I  have  the  best 
right  to  join  the  society,  for  I  am  very  croyante. 
I  have  had  such  experiences  !  Ah  !" 

"  Do  tell  us  about  them." 

"  A  ghost  story  first  hand  !  How  delightful !" 
said  several  people  round  the  table. 

"  Not  now,  not  while  we  are  at  table,"  returned 
the  princess.  "Perhaps  by  and  by."  And  no 
one  had  the  bad  taste  to  insist  further. 

But  Mrs.  Van  Winkle,  who,  no  matter  at  what 
cost,  was  never  content  to  play  second  fiddle,  here 
observed, 

"  I  once  saw  a  ghost — or  what  I  took  to  be  a 
ghost — in  St.  Petersburg,  in  the  dusk  of  the  even- 
ing, in  my  room.  I  was  dreadfully  frightened. 
It  proved  to  be  a  Russian ;  those  foreigners  are 
so  very  enterprising.  He  had  long  shown  his  ad- 
miration. He  now  sprang  at  me  with  a  drawn 
sword  in  his  hand.  Happily,  I  was  near  the  bell, 
or  it  might  have  been  very  awkward." 

"  And  what  became  of  the  ghost  ?"  asked  Mor- 
daunt,  biting  his  lips.  "Did  you  have  him  ar- 
rested ?" 

"Oh,  no,  I  felt  too  much  compassion  for  him, 
poor  man  !  Indeed,  I  was  very  much  touched. 
There  is  so  little  romance  in  this  present  day." 

"What  a  charming,  comprehensive  word  that 


A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  135 

is,  my  dear  Mrs.  Van  Winkle !"  laughed  Sims. 
"  It  includes  murder,  highway  robbery,  and  now, 
I  see,  other  little  offences  !" 

A  good  deal  of  amusement  was  caused  by  this 
peculiar  revelation,  and  one  can  only  imagine  the 
narrator  intended  that  such  should  be  the  result. 
I  am  confident  she  rarely  expected  to  be  taken 
seriously.  If  she  could  shock  or  astonish  her  au- 
dience by  her  utterances  she  was  satisfied.  She 
had  certainly  driven  the  ghosts  from  the  field. 

But  when  dinner  was  over,  and  the  men  had 
rejoined  the  ladies  in  that  bower  of  embroideries 
and  perfume  where  Mrs.  Van  Winkle  received 
her  guests,  lapped  in  languorous  repose  on  satin 
cushions,  and  no  one's  face  could  be  distinguished 
under  the  dim,  irreligious  light  of  silk-shrouded 
lamps,  then  the  narrator  of  abnormal  experiences, 
being  pressed  by  her  hostess,  began,  without  re- 
luctance, without  a  shadow  of  hesitation, 

"  It  will  be  five  years  ago  next  May,  I  was  in 
Rome  and  alone.  The  prince  had  left  me  to  go 
to  Palermo — on  business,  as  he  said.  I  had  only 
been  married  three  years  at  this  time,  and  though 
I  cannot  say  I  was  happy,  no  ! — I  still  loved  my 
husband.  I  was  not  completely  desillusionnee. 
I  knew  he  was  volage,  but  I  had  no  reason  to 
suspect  that  he  was  quite — how  do  you  say  ? — 
estranged  from  me.  I  gave  him  a  liberal  allow- 


136  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

ance,  over  and  above  what  had  been  settled  on 
him  at  our  marriage,  and  he  always  treated  me 
with,  well — with  respect.  He  was  not  passionn'e, 
no— but  I  thought,  enfin,  I  thought  it  was  not  his 
nature.  Well !  he  went  to  Palermo,  and  I  had  a 
letter  from  him  in  the  course  of  a  few  days,  say- 
ing his  business  was  advancing  favorably,  though 
slowly.  He  would  probably  be  detained  longer 
than  he  expected.  I  was  not  anxious,  I  was  not 
uneasy  about  him — why  should  I  be? — when  I 
went  to  bed  that  night.  That  made  my  dream  the 
more  extraordinary,  tout  d  fait  saisissante.  I  saw 
him  in  a  garden,  under  a  tree.  Beside  him  stood 
a  dark  woman,  whose  face  was  quite  distinct.  I 
could  have  drawn  it.  She  gave  him  some  fruit." 

"  Were  they  in  the  condition  of  Adam  and 
Eve  ?"  murmured  Mrs.  Van  Winkle,  from  her  pile 
of  satin  cushions. 

"  Oh,  no,"  continued  the  princess,  gravely,  "  she 
had  on  a  yellow  gown,  trimmed  with  broderie 
Anglaise.  I  can  see  it  now !  He  was  dressed  in 
gray  tweed.  He  ate  the  fruit  she  gave  him,  and 
then  gradually,  gradually,  I  saw  his  face  change 
color,  and  the  expression,  ah  !  il  avait  un  air  me- 
chant.  I  had  never  seen  him  look  like  that  before 
— he  was  almost  green,  his  features  hideously  dis- 
torted. He  fell  down  at  her  feet,  and  I  knew  that 
she  had  poisoned  him.  I  woke  with  a  scream  !" 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  137 

"  No  wonder.  You  must  yourself  have,  eaten 
something  that  disagreed  with  you,  princess !" 
said  Sims. 

She  shook  her  head.  "  No,  but  my  dream  dis- 
agreed with  me  !  Ah !  I  was  quite  boulversee,  I 
could  not  sleep  again,  and  still  I  saw  them  dis- 
tinctly before  me.  In  the  morning  I  rang  for  my 
maid,  and  said  I  would  start  for  Palermo.  My 
family  tried  to  dissuade  me  from  following  my 
husband,  but  I  said  I  knew  some  misfortune  had 
happened  to  him,  or  would  happen,  if  I  did  not 
go.  What  I  had  dreamed  was  a  presentiment ; 
and  so  persuaded  of  this  was  I,  that  when  I 
reached  Naples,  though  a  great  hurricane  was 
blowing,  and  I  am  a  dreadful  sailor— -je  souffre 
horriblement — I  insisted  on  embarking.  They  told 
me  the  steamer  was  a  very  bad  one,  and  really 
not  fit  to  put  to  sea  in  such  weather,  but  I  was 
firm.  Que  voulez  voits?  I  was  possessed  with 
the  idea.  We  had  a  terrible  passage,  but  at  last 
we  reached  Palermo,  and  I  drove  to  the  Hotel  des 
Palmes.  I  was  dreadfully  nervous  ;  I  scarcely 
dared  ask  after  my  husband,  but  they  told  me  he 
was  quite  well — he  was  in  the  garden,  so  I  fol- 
lowed him.  I  could  not  rest  till  I  had  seen,  with 
my  own  eyes,  that  he  did  not  look  as  he  had  done 
in  my  dream.  I  found  him  under  a  tree,  a  palm- 
tree,  in  his  gray  tweed  suit,  seated  beside  a  bru- 


138  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

nette  dressed  in  yellow — that  Madame  Moretto, 
who  has  poisoned  his  life  ever  since  /" 

"And  does  that  account  for  his  looking  as  he 
does  —  so  very  unwholesome — princess?"  asked 
Mrs.  Van  Winkle. 

"Ah!  I  saw  a  change  in  that  minute,  when 
he  looked  up  and  perceived  me.  Ah  !  he  turned 
green,  just  as  I  had  seen  him  in  my  dream — d'un 
ton  verddtre — and  his  expression,  it  was  terrible  ! 
That  was  the  beginning  of  all  my  trouble,  which 
lasted  nearly  five  years,  before  I  consented  to  di- 
vorce him.  He  went  to  live  in  Paris,  and,  hav- 
ing no  Italian  property,  became  a  French  subject. 
This  enabled  me  to  do  so.  Have  I  not  reason, 
ma  c/iere,  to  believe  in  spiritual  warnings,  second 
sight,  and — and  so  on?" 

Of  course  every  one  declared  that  it  was  the  most 
interesting  and  remarkable  instance  of  spiritual 
premonition  that  he  or  she  had  ever  heard,  direct 
from  the  fountain-head.  Only  Mr.  Sims  made 
a  captious  remark,  to  the  effect  that  the  vision 
seemed  to  have  been  quite  useless — it  had  result- 
ed in  the  princess  being  very  seasick,  and  very 
unhappy  some  time  before  she  need  have  been  ; 
otherwise,  the  warning  had  produced  no  effect, 
one  way  or  the  other. 

Grace  listened  to  all  this  in  silence.  It  was 
amazing  to  her  that  any  one  could  bring  herself 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  139 

to  relate  deliberately  so  painful  an  episode  in  her 
past,  to  hand  it  over,  as  it  were,  for  analysis  to  a 
cold  and  curious  circle,  eager,  indeed,  for  "  some 
new  thing,"  but  not  even  pretending  to  feel  any 
warm  sympathy  for  the  lady's  domestic  woes. 
It  confirmed  Grace  in  the  opinion  that  those  woes 
could  not  be  very  deep-seated.  No  doubt  this 
soft  feather-bed  of  a  woman  had  suffered  to  some 
extent,  but  not  to  the  extent  which  she  herself 
believed — not  as  a  proud,  passionate,  sensitive 
nature  would  have  suffered  in  like  circumstances. 
To  such  a  one  it  would  have  been  impossible  to 
make  them  the  subject  of  after-dinner  discussion, 
in  a  circle  of  the  merest  acquaintance. 

She  was  at  some  distance  from  the  princess, 
and  Madame  Siebel,  who  sat  near  her,  whispered, 

"  You  can  take  a  horse  to  the  water,  but  you 
can't  make  him  drink.  He  was  dead  sick  of  his 
wife  five  years  ago,  so  she  would  have  done  bet- 
ter to  set  him  free  then." 

"In  England  we  don't  think  that  sort  of  mill- 
stone should  be  so  easily  slipped  off  the  neck," 
returned  Grace,  half  seriously  and  half  playfully. 
"  She  has  only  just  divorced  him,  then  ?" 

"  Only  just.  He  is  waiting  now,  I  believe,  for 
Madame  Moretto  to  divorce  her  husband  in  order 
to  marry  her." 

"  Good  gracious  !    Has  she  got  a  husband  also  ? 


140  A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY 

And  what  is  the  plea  in  her  case? — or  is  it  the 
husband  who  divorces  her  /" 

"  No.  He  is  passive,  I  am  told,  in  the  matter. 
She  pleads  desertion,  though  of  course  that  is  all 
nonsense,  for  she  is  ever  so  rich,  and  left  him 
years  ago.  The  curious  thing  is,  no  one  knew 
she  had  a  hushand  until  the  prince  was  free  to 
marry  her.  Then  it  came  out  she  had  been  clan- 
destinely married  to  some  American,  who  had 
separated  from  her,  when  he  discovered  the  sort 
of  woman  she  was." 

"  Well !  I  must  say  these  divorces  by  mutual 
consent  seem  very  easily  obtained  in  your  coun- 
try." 

"Yes,  if  you  are  in  the  right  State.  I  don't 
mean  state  of  mind  or  body — I  mean  if  you  go 
and  live  for  six  months  in  a  State  where  it  is  the 
law.  Madame  Moretto  has  come  over  here  ex- 
pi'essly  for  that  purpose,  and  is  living  in  Rhode 
Island,  I  am  told,  where  divorce  is  made  easy. 
It  is  not  so  in  New  York." 

"  But  I  have  seen  her  here  twice  ?" 

"  Oh  !  they  have  only  been  over  for  the  day. 
It  is  a  funny  story,  isn't  it  ? — this  sort  of  double 
game  of  chess.  To  make  it  complete,  the  Amer- 
ican ought  now  to  marry  the  princess." 

"  I  should  think  she  had  had  enough  of  matri- 
mony." 


A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY  141 

"  Oh,  dear,  no.  She  is  just  the  woman  to  marry 
again.  A  husband  is  a  luxury  that  sort  of  woman 
cannot  forego.  I  shouldn't  wonder  if  George  Ray 
the  Third  were  the  fortunate  man." 

"  That  young  Adonis  ?  Do  you  mean  that 
he—?  Oh  !  impossible  !" 

"  Impossible  that  he  should  propose  ?  Not  at 
all.  He  is  awfully  hard  up.  The  only  gold,  I 
believe,  he  possesses  is  in  his  teeth."  Here  she 
laughed  merrily.  "  Sometimes  I  think  we  take  a 
pride  in  the  amount  of  gold  we  stuff  into  our 
mouths.  Talk  about  the  gold-fields,  I  will  back 
a  fashionable  churchyard  to  beat  them  as  a  mine 
of  wealth." 

Grace  could  not  help  laughing. 

"  I  heard  of  a  man  who  had  a  front  tooth  stuffed 
with  a  diamond,  but  I  didn't  believe  it." 

"  Why  not  ?  Young  men  addicted  to  precious 
stones  have  so  few  opportunities  of  displaying 
them.  If  George  Ray  the  Third  marries  the 
princess,  I'll  suggest  to  him  that  he  should  wear 
one  of  hers,  instead  of  that  lump  of  gold,  in  his 
eye-tooth." 

The  princess  here  rose.  It  was  time  to  go  to 
the  assembly,  of  which  she  was  a  patroness,  and 
whither  nearly  all  the  party  present  were  bound. 


CHAPTER   X 

MOKDAUNT  BALLINGER'S  luncheons  at  the  Law- 
yers' Club,  and  his  introductions  to  various  mag- 
nates of  the  money-market,  had  led  to  his  mind 
being  tossed  and  buffeted  on  a  sea  of  railroads, 
and  mines,  and  joint-stock  companies,  until  it  had 
settled  —  as  much  from  exhaustion,  perhaps,  as 
anything — on  "real  estate"  in  one  of  the  rapidly 
rising  cities  of  the  Far  "West.  This  seemed  as  safe 
an  investment,  to  bring  in  a  large  return  for  his 
money,  as  he  could  find.  He  felt  sure  Mrs.  Framp- 
ton  would  think  so.  Still,  as  his  aunt,  whose 
acuteness  in  money  matters  he  regarded  with  an 
almost  superstitious  trust,  not  wholly  unmixed 
with  dread,  was  to  join  them  in  the  course  of  a 
few  weeks,  the  young  man  resolved  to  defer  the 
purchase  of  the  shares  offered  him  until  he  could 
visit  Pueblo,  and  investigate  on  the  spot  the  con- 
dition and  prospects  of  the  estate  in  question. 

He  came  into  his  sister's  room,  a  morning  or 
two  after  the  Van  Winkle  dinner,  holding  an 
open  letter  in  his  hand. 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  143 

"  I've  heard  from  Aunt  Su.  She  has  got  my 
letter,  and  seems  in  an  awful  stew  about  my  in- 
vesting money  here.  Well,  I  wrote  yesterday  to 
tell  her  I  should  do  nothing  till  she  came.  She 
thinks  she  can  sail  the  middle  of  February,  and 
join  us  in  Boston.  By  the  bye,  have  you  written 
to  Mrs.  Courtly  ?" 

"No.  I  was  waiting  for  you  to  tell  me  what 
time  to  propose  to  go  to  her.  I  suppose  we  shall 
only  be  there  a  few  days  before  we  go  to  Bos- 
ton ?" 

"Well,  that  depends.  I  believe  the  Planters 
are  going  to  her  next  week.  We  may  as  well 
offer  ourselves  at  the  same  time." 

Grace  smiled. 

"Certainly."  Then,  with  a  malicious  glance 
into  her  brother's  face,  "  Perhaps  Mrs.  Courtly 
would  invite  Miss  Hurlstone,  too,  if  I  mentioned 
her.  They  are  friends,  I  know." 

"  Well,  don't  mention  her,  then.  She  is  a  very 
nice  girl,  and  all  that,  but — I'd  rather  she  didn't 
come." 

He  stood  near  the  table  where  his  sister  was 
writing  as  he  said  this.  Then  he  took  up  a  pen, 
and  flung  it  down,  fidgeted  first  on  one  leg,  then 
on  the  other,  finally  walked  to  the  window,  still 
with  Mrs.  Frampton's  letter  in  his  hand,  and  re- 
mained there  silent,  with  his  back  to  Grace,  for 


144  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

several  minutes.  She  knew  him  too  well  not  to 
see  there  was  something  on  his  mind — something 
which  he  desired  to  say  to  her,  and  yet  found  it 
difficult  to  express.  She  thought,  not  without  a 
twinge  of  apprehension,  of  the  various  ladies  to 
whom  he  had  paid  attention  here.  Could  it  be 
that  he  had  entangled  himself,  more  or  less,  with 
one  of  these  ?  Her  mind  so  little  anticipated 
what  was  coming  that  she  started  and  flushed 
when  he  said, 

"There's  something  else  in  Aunt  Su's  letter 
which  I  think  you  ought  to  know,  Grace.  In 
fact,  she  says  I'm  to  tell  you.  Because  you're 
sure  to  hear  of  it  sooner  or  later.  People  are  full 
of  it.  There's  fresh  evidence  against  Lawrence." 

Her  face  hardened.  She  closed  her  lips  tight 
for  a  moment,  and  in  her  clear  blue  eyes  there 
was  a  momentary  flash,  as  she  said,  quickly, 

"What  is  it?" 

"  They've  found  the  draft  of  another  will, 
dated  some  years  back,  by  which  his  uncle  left 
the  bulk  of  his  fortune  to  his  other  nephew, 
Giles  Tracy,  and  only  ten  thousand  pounds  to 
Ivor  Lawrence." 

"  You  call  that  evidence  against  him  ?  What 
does  that  prove  ?"  she  asked,  hotly. 

"It  only  proves  that  before  Ivor  got  the  influ- 
ence over  his  uncle  which  he  exercised  latterly, 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  145 

the  old  chap  meant  to  leave  his  estates  not  to  his 
sister's  son,  but  to  his  brother's  son,  as  was  nat- 
ural, and  as  it  was  understood  he  would  do." 

"  Understood  by  whom  ?  By  Mr.  Giles  Tracy, 
I  suppose,  who  took  to  gambling  on  the  strength 
of  this  prospective  fortune  !  And  why  was  it 
'natural,'  pray,  that  a  man  who  had  made — not 
inherited — his  large  fortune,  like  old  Mr.  Tracy, 
should  leave  it  to  a  spendthrift,  a  vautrien,  in- 
stead of  to  a  clever  rising  barrister  like  his  oth- 
er nephew,  whose  character  was  universally  re- 
spected ?" 

"  Well,  it  isn't  universally  respected  now, 
Grace." 

"The  more  shame  for  those  who  are  ready  to 
believe  any  foul  accusation  on  such  evidence  !" 
Her  cheeks  were  aflame,  and  her  voice  shook  as 
she  spoke.  "Evidence?  It  is  too  childish  to 
call  this  evidence.  According  to  your  own  show- 
ing, all  it  proves  is  that  the  old  man  once — be- 
fore he  knew  how  young  Tracy  would  turn  out — 
meant  to  make  him  his  heir.  He  discovered  in 
time  the  comparative  worth  of  both  his  nephews." 

"You  forget  there  is  a  lot  of  cumulative  evi- 
dence against  Ivor  before  :  his  bringing  a  lawyer, 
who  happens  to  have  died  since,  to  his  uncle's 
bedside  when  he  was  dying — young  Tracy's  be- 
ing refused  admittance  to  his  uncle — " 
10 


146  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"Because  the  old  man  could  not  endure  the 
sight  of  him  latterly.  Every  one  knows  that  he 
refused  repeatedly  to  see  him ;  and  those  who 
had  heard  him  speak  of  his  nephew  during  the 
last  year  or  two  were  amazed  to  find  that  he  had 
left  him  even  so  much  as  twenty  thousand  pounds." 

Mordaunt  shrugged  his  shoulders. 

"The  signature  of  the  will  is  disputed,  as  you 
know." 

An  ejaculation  indicative  of  intense  scorn  burst 
from  his  sister's  lips. 

"  So  he  is  to  be  accused  of  forgery.  I  wonder 
they  don't  add  murder  to  the  charge!  Has  the 
trial  begun?" 

"No,  it  has  been  again  deferred." 

She  was  silent  for  a  moment,  leaning  her  head 
upon  her  left  hand,  while  with  a  pen  in  the  right 
she  traced  some  scrolls  upon  the  note-paper  be- 
fore her. 

"Poor  Mr.  Lawrence!"  she  said,  at  last.  "I 
have  a  great  mind  to  write  to  him." 

"  Good  God  !  You  wouldn't  dream  of  doing 
anything  so  undignified,  so  outrageous,  after  his 
behavior  to  you,  Grace?  A  fellow  who  runs 
after  you  for  months  so  that  half  the  world  be- 
lieves you  are  engaged  to  him,  and  that  he  is 
only  waiting  till  he  is  rich  enough  to  marry,  and 
who,  when  he  inherits  this  big  fortune,  turns  his- 


A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY  147 

back  and  never  comes  near  you  again — and  you 
would  actually  demean  yourself  to  write  to  him?" 

Strange  to  say,  now  that  the  discussion  had 
entered  upon  personal  grounds,  the  young  lady 
had  comparatively  regained  her  composure.  Still, 
it  was  not  without  an  effort  that  she  said, 

"Mr.  Lawrence  and  I  are  very  good  friends, 
and  I  hope  we  shall  always  remain  so.  We 
never  have  been,  and,  of  course,  never  shall  be, 
anything  more.  I  see  no  reason  why  I  should 
not  write  and  assure  him  that  there  is  one  person 
who  believes  in  him  if  all  the  verdicts  in  the 
world  went  against  him ;  if  the  whole  of  London 
cut  him  dead,  it  would  make  no  difference  to  me. 
I  know  him  to  be  a  perfectly  honorable,  truthful, 
noble  character.  He  is  peculiar ;  there  are  some 
very  rugged  knots  in  him  which  you  and  Aunt 
Su,  particularly  Aunt  Su,  could  never  understand. 
And  you  don't  understand  him  now.  You  think, 
supposing  that  he  cared  for  me,  which  of  course 
he  never  did,  that  he  should  have  proposed  when 
he  found  himself  with  ten  thousand  pounds  a 
year.  That  is  the  last  thing  he  would  do  with 
this  accusation,  this  cloud  over  his  head.  He 
might  have  done  so  as  a  poor  barrister,  but 
never  as  one  whose  good  name  was  tainted.  I 
don't  say  he  is  right  in  avoiding  us  as  he  has 
done  ;  I  think,  on  the  contrary,  he  is  quite  wrong. 


148  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERT 

But  I  should  not  be  afraid  of  his  misunderstand- 
ing me  if  I  wrote  to  him.  I  think  he  would  do 
justice  to  my  motives,  and  thank  me." 

"  All  the  same,  Grace,  I  do  hope  to  goodness 
you  won't.  Men  of  the  world  are  not  used  to 
such  high-flown  sentiments.  And  it's  so  very  like 
throwing  yourself  at  the  head  of  a  cad,  who — " 

"None  of  that,  Mordy,  please,  or  I  must  ask 
you  to  leave  the  room."  She  spoke  now  with 
more  excitement.  "We  have  gone  through  all 
the  string  of  opprobrious  epithets  at  your  com- 
mand before,  you  know.  They  produce  no  effect 
on  me — yes,  they  do.  They  make  me  feel  very 
irritable  with  you.  So,  like  a  dear,  drop  it,  please, 
and  if  you  mention  Mr.  Lawrence — I  have  no  ob- 
jection whatever  to  your  mentioning  him — do  so 
respectfully,  as  my  friend." 

lie  felt  there  was  nothing  more  to  be  said.  He 
had  expended  all  his  ammunition — retreat  alone 
remained  for  him.  But  when  the  door  was  closed 
behind  her  brother,  the  girl's  fortitude  and  pride 
broke  down.  She  laid  her  head  between  her 
hands,  and  the  hot  tears  of  wounded  love  and  dis- 
appointment coursed  down  her  cheeks  and  fell 
on  the  note-paper  upon  which  her  pen  had  traced 
a  confusion  of  curves  and  circles.  Why  had  he 
not  spoken  to  her  when  he  was  a  struggling  bar- 
rister? Was  it  because  of  her  aunt,  her  brother? 


A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  149 

Was  it  by  reason  of  false  pride?  That  he  had 
pride,  of  an  unreasoning,  indomitable  kind,  allied 
to  the  obstinacy  which  was  so  marked  a  feature 
of  his  character,  she  knew  well.  But  this  should 
not  have  been  enough  to  have  kept  him  silent  if 
he  cared  for  her.  And  unless  she  was  utterly 
blinded  by  vanity,  by  a  fatuous  misapprehension 
of  looks  she  had  now  and  again  found  fastened 
upon  her,  of  casual  words  and  actions  escaping 
from  a  reticent  man,  he  had  cared  for  her  at  that 
time.  She  would  sooner  have  died  than  admit  to 
her  brother  that  she  believed  this.  To  him,  as  to 
her  aunt,  while  hotly  defending  Ivor  Lawrence, 
whenever  a  discussion  concerning  him  arose,  she 
always  declared  that,  as  "  there  had  been  nothing 
between  them,"  her  only  feeling  as  to  his  now 
holding  aloof  from  them  was  grief  at  the  aliena- 
tion of  the  most  trusted  friend  she  had  ever  had. 
Of  course,  Mrs.  Frampton  was  much  too  acute  to 
be  deceived  by  these  protestations.  When  the  ac- 
cusations against  Lawrence  were  made  public, 
Grace's  health  and  spirits  were  so  visibly  affected 
for  a  time  that  those  who  loved  her  most  could 
not  but  see  how  strong  a  hold  this  man  had  taken 
on  her  heart.  Nearly  eight  months  had  passed 
since  then,  and  to  all  outward  seeming  she  had 
recovered  her  buoyant  tone,  her  healthy  interest 
and  capacity  of  deriving  pleasure  from  things 


150  A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

around  her.  Only  at  rare  moments,  and  when 
alone,  as  now,  did  the  flood-gates  of  a  grief,  the 
well-springs  of  which  lay  so  far  below  the  sur- 
face, rise  up  and  overflow. 

Nevertheless,  after  a  while  her  brave  spirit 
rose.  She  must  not  succumb  to  her  trouble. 
For  the  sake  of  others  she  must  put  it  away  from 
her.  She  rose  and  bathed  her  eyes.  She  had  an 
engagement  to  a  "  ladies'  luncheon "  party,  con- 
vened at  the  house  of  an  agreeable  woman,  al- 
most a  stranger  to  Grace,  who,  after  securing 
her,  had  invited  seventeen  others  "to  meet  Miss 
Ballinger."  The  luncheon  was  exquisite  and 
well-served ;  the  conversation  general  and  very 
pleasant. 

"  I  had  no  idea  it  could  have  been  so  pleasant," 
she  said,  afterwards.  "  I  really  think  eighteen 
Englishwomen  would  have  been  very  dull,  all  the 
waves  floundering  together  without  a  male  rock 
to  dash  themselves  against.  But  these  waves  had 
so  much  salt  in  them  !  I  felt  myself  quite  invig- 
orated by  plunging  among  them." 

The  truth  was  these  waves  were  rather  stronger 
than  those  which  played,  as  a  rule,  upon  the  fine 
shores  of  fashionable  New  York  life.  The  women 
here  met  were  almost  all  interested  and  active  in 
better  things  than  gossip,  parties,  dress.  Their 
fields  and  their  aims  Avere  diverse  ;  some  of  them 


A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  151 

were  young  and  active,  some  past  middle  age, 
but  with  keen  intelligence  undimmed,  sympathies 
warm  as  in  girlhood,  and  a  playful  humor — a 
humor  altogether  national,  conveyed  sometimes 
in  a  word,  the  turn  of  a  phrase,  lighting  with  the 
illusive  flame  of  a  will-o'-the-wisp  swamps  into 
which  an  interchange  of  talk  so  often  flounders. 
They  were  not  pretentious,  though  many  of  them 
did  adventure  upon  subjects  that  demand  more 
time,  thought,  and  preparation  than  most  English- 
women conceive  it  fitting  to  give  to  any  study. 
One  girl  had  been  through  a  course  of  anatomy ; 
not,  as  it  appeared,  with  any  ulterior  object,  but  in 
order  to  master  the  wonderful  mechanism  of  the 
human  frame,  "  which,"  as  she  said,  with  a  hard 
directness  which  sounded  odd  in  one  so  young, 
"being  a  fact  always  present,  should  interest  us 
more  than  it  does.  We  can  learn,  and  we  ought  to 
know  all  about  it ;  for  this  is  a  thing  which  affects 
our  whole  being  here,  our  present  and  our  future  ; 
whereas  the  soul,  which  people  trouble  themselves 
so  much  about,  is  only  a  matter  of  speculation.  It 
seems  a  pity  to  waste  time  on  a  subject  we  know 
so  little  of." 

Grace  was  too  wise  to  enter  into  a  discussion 
with  the  youthful  philosopher.  This  was  a  phase 
which  would  probably  pass  away  in  a  few  years, 
when,  if  the  girl  fell  under  right  influence,  she 


152  A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

might  learn  that  there  were  higher  truths  than 
those  which  can  be  tangibly  felt.  In  the  mean- 
time, the  uncompromising  antagonism  to  all  con- 
ventional acceptances  and  polite  euphemisms,  the 
resolve  to  seize  the  truth  to  her  hand  and  probe 
it  thoroughly,  interested  Grace.  This  was  a  type 
of  American  character  she  had  not  yet  met. 

But  among  the  middle-aged  women  was  one 
whose  studies  and  experience  were  far  more  curi- 
ous. She  had  large  means,  which  she  had  partly 
expended  among  the  fast -diminishing  tribe  of 
Zuni  Indians  in  Arizona,  whose  language  she  had 
rescued  from  oblivion  by  means  of  the  phono- 
graph. The  music  of  their  hymns  and  chants  and 
invocations  for  rain  had  also  thus  been  noted 
down,  and  several  unique  objects — notably  a  jew- 
elled toad,  supposed  to  be  a  god — secured  by  her 
excavations.  The  ruined  city,  made  of  adobe, 
in  which  this  tribe  dwelt,  had  been  saved  from 
total  destruction  through  this  lady's  exertions, 
who  induced  the  government  to  aid  her  in  pro- 
tecting them  from  the  attacks  of  other  and  more 
powerful  tribes.  So  interested  had  she  become 
in  this  people,  that  she  had  bidden  some  of  their 
high-priests  to  journey  to  the  East,  and  visit  her 
— which  they  did.  She  described  most  graphi- 
cally their  dignity,  their  admirable  breeding,  the 
eloquence  of  their  gestures,  expressing  their  mean- 


A   VOYAGE   OP   DISCOVERY  153 

ing  so  clearly  as  scarcely  to  need  the  interpret- 
er's verbal  translation  of  their  speech.  They  went 
thrice  a  day  down  to  the  sea-shore — the  house 
stood  on  a  cliff — to  make  their  prayers  and  liba- 
tions. "  You  are  not  as  religious  as  we  are,"  they 
said,  "  but  we  suppose  you  are  as  religious  as  you 
have  time  to  be." 

Some  day  a  learned  monograph  will  be  pub- 
lished of  this  people,  their  language,  their  faith, 
their  customs  ;  and  the  philologists  will  fight  over 
their  origin,  and  the  plough  of  civilization  will 
pass  over  their  poor,  mud-built  city  ;  but  Grace 
was  interested  in  meeting  the  enthusiast  through 
whose  courage,  energy,  and  devotion  so  much  had 
been  rescued  as  a  text-book  for  historical  research. 
It  was  a  fine,  sonorous  note  in  the  diapason  of 
American  character,  and  the  young  Englishwoman 
heard  it  with  pleasure. 

That  evening  she  and  her  brother  dined  with 
Mrs.  Caldwell.  It  was  not  a  large  party;  and  the 
guests,  with  the  exception  of  Mrs.  Flynn  and  her 
cousin,  were  all  men — mostly  men  distinguished 
in  some  way  other  than  that  of  having  amassed 
large  fortunes. 

It  is  true  that  Alan  Brown,  the  young  Anglo- 
maniac — "and  stupid  at  that,"  as  May  Clayton 
said — was  present,  but  as  he  sat  next  Doreen,  to 
whom  he  talked  in  a  low  tone,  his  insignificance 


154  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

was  not  offensive.  Brilliant  Chudleigh,  the  ad- 
vocate, whose  scathing  eloquence  was  a  proverb, 
jovial  Dr.  Parr,  simmering  with  fun,  ready  to  boil 
over  at  any  moment,  wise  and  witty  General  Stout, 
famous  in  the  war,  and  now  in  peace  time  as  great 
a  favorite  with  women  as  with  men,  the  poet 
Sloper,  so  gently  humorous,  so  blandly  pungent, 
Mordaunt's  shrewd  friend  Reid,  and  two  others, 
whom  the  Ballingers  had  not  met  before,  threw 
their  separate  contributions  into  the  common  pool, 
and  produced  that  best  of  round  games — general 
conversation.  No  one  monopolized  the  talk,  but 
the  men  had  the  best  of  it.  May  Clayton  held 
her  own,  it  is  true  ;  the  provocation  of  her  nimble 
tongue  stimulated  the  clever  elders  around  ;  her 
sallies  elicited  peals  of  laughter ;  and  from  time 
to  time,  when  there  was  a  lull,  she  set  the  hum- 
ming-top— as  with  a  neat  flick  of  the  whip — once 
more  frantically  spinning.  But  as  dinner  pro- 
gressed, and  the  conversation,  leaving  generali- 
ties, entered  into  the  arena  of  personal  chaff,  tbe 
spur  of  the  girl's  tongue  was  not  needed.  The 
combatants  were  on  their  mettle,  with  a  gallery 
to  applaud  their  brilliant  attacks  and  retorts,  their 
assaults,  and  reprises,  and  carrying  of  the  war 
into  the  enemy's  country;  each  man  had  his  bout, 
and  the  fooling,  conducted  with  perfect  good 
humor,  was  delightful.  Such  a  contest  would 


A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  155 

not  be  possible  in  England.  In  chaff,  we  hold 
that  all  is  permissible  but  the  truth.  But  here  to 
Avound  one  of  these  dexterous  knights,  armed  cap- 
a-pie,  seemed  impossible.  Chudleigh  had  tried 
for  the  Presidency  of  the  United  States,  and  had 
failed.  The  mock  commiseration  he  met  with  at 
the  hands  of  Parr,  who  deplored  the  waste  of 
fine  oratory  spilled  upon  that  occasion,  was  coun- 
tervailed by  the  satirical  sympathy  Chudleigh 
affected  in  rounded  periods  at  the  charges  of  brib- 
ery and  corruption  brought  in  the  public  prints 
against  a  well-known  body,  of  which  the  M.D.  was 
a  leading  member.  This  spear-thrust  might  have 
been  expected  to  pierce  his  armor.  Not  at  all ; 
he  rode  on  laughing,  and  apparently  untouched. 
Then  it  was  proposed  that  government  should  be 
memorialized  to  create  the  post  of  Laureate  to 
the  United  States,  in  order  that  the  poet  Sloper 
should  be  elected  thereto.  His  verses  had  failed 
to  soften  the  hearts  of  his  native  town  so  far  as 
to  induce  them  to  send  him  as  their  representative 
to  Congress,  but  this  want  of  "appreciation,  this 
deadness  of  heart — said  General  Stout,  warming 
to  his  subject — would,  no  doubt,  disappear  when 
Sloper's  Sonnets  received  the  stamp  of  official  rec- 
ognition. As  to  the  general  himself,  he  received 
thrusts  on  all  sides,  as  to  his  campaigns  in  stage- 
land,  his  conquests  in  the  green-room,  his  capitu- 


156  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

lations  under  (scenic)  canvas,  his  ready  response 
to  the  cry  from  oppressed  damsels  of  "  Stout  to 
the  rescue  !" 

The  Ballingers  were  both  much  aniused.  Mor- 
daunt,  between  Mrs.  Caldwell  and  Mrs.  Flynn, 
had  two  foot-notes,  as  it  were,  to  the  text  of  all 
this  personal  raillery.  Mrs.  Flynn  was  the  more 
ample  and  unrestrained  expositor  of  the  two,  Mrs. 
Caldwell  not  going  beyond  a  hint,  sometimes, 
where  the  younger  and  livelier  lady  became  ex- 
haustive. Grace  had  Pierce  Caldwell  beside  her. 
He  fully  entered  into  the  fun,  and  told  her  enough 
to  make  her  understand  the  point  of  each  attack, 
the  dexterity  of  each  defence,  the  imperturbable 
good  temper  with  which  all  who  mingled  in  the 
fray  bore  the  several  blows. 

"People  say  you  Americans  are  thin-skinned," 
she  said.  "Perhaps  there  is  one  side  of  you — that 
side  which  you  turn  to  us — which  has  a  sensitive 
skin ;  but  the  other  side,  that  which  is  presented 
to  yourselves,  must  be  covered  with  a  perfect  hide ! 
Englishmen  could  not  stand  these  blows  below 
the  belt,  they  would  turn  very  nasty.  I  saw  a 
clever  young  man  once  in  a  country-house  retire 
to  bed  because — we  were  playing  at '  Twenty-one 
Questions' — he  was  so  offended  at  an  impudent 
bit  of  chaff.  We  had  thought  of  the  Duke  of 
Wellington's  monument  in  St.  Paul's,  and  when 


A  VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY  157 

he  could  not  guess  it,  and  had  to  be  told,  he 
declared  indignantly  he  had  never  heard  of  it. 
'Perhaps  you  never  heard  of  the  Duke  of  Wel- 
lington,' said  a  pert  prig,  whereupon  the  discom- 
fited guesser  went  straight  off  to  bed.  Now,  I 
see  that  no  American  could  possibly  be  so  silly. 
You  have  your  tempers  so  admirably  in  hand." 

"Well,  I  don't  know  about  that,"  said  Pierce, 
dubiously.  "  It  all  depends  on  whether  we  think  a 
man  means  mischief  or  not.  These  fellows  here, 
you  see,  are  all  good  friends.  They  enjoy  sharp- 
ening their  wits  on  each  other." 

"  So  it  seems,"  said  Grace,  laughing. 

Dr.  Parr,  on  her  other  side,  had  been  watching 
his  opportunity  to  fire  sly  shots  obliquely  across 
the  table  at  Chudleigh,  and  had  not  heard  the 
foregoing.  He  now  turned  round  and  addressed 
the  young  Englishwoman  with  the  unmistakable 
air  that  says,  "Enough  of  fooling.  Let  us  be 
serious,"  though  there  was  still  a  sub-cutaneous 
twitch  about  his  mouth. 

"What  do  you  think  of  us,  Miss  Ballinger?  I 
am  afraid  you  will  go  back  and  say  we  are  an  un- 
licensed  set  of  victuallers,  making  a  terrible  row, 
without  any  manners,  any  polish,  eh  ?" 

"  I  am  so  glad  you  put  it  that  way,  instead  of 
asking  me  what  I  think  of  America,  which  is  so 
difficult  to  answer,  and  which  I  am  asked,  upon  an 


158  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

average,  twelve  times  every  day.  It  isn't  at  all 
difficult  to  answer  you.  I  should  like  to  dine  with 
such  unlicensed  victuallers  every  day  of  my  life." 

"  Great  Scot !  This  is,  indeed,  an  incentive  to 
continue  in  our  evil  ways,"  cried  the  doctor. 
"You  cannot  be  English,  Miss  Ballinger,  quite, 
quite  English  ?  A  drop  of  Irish  or  foreign  must 
be  infused  into  your  blue  blood,  surely  ?" 

"  Why  so  ?  Are  we  not  the  most  appreciative 
nation  upon  earth  ?" 

"  Critical — say  critical — and  I  am  with  you. 
You  measure  everything  by  one  standard — your 
own.  I  don't  say  you  are  wrong,  but  it  makes 
English  approval  sometimes  appear  to  be  tinged 
with — what  shall  I  say  ?  condescension  ?  Do  you 
know  the  story  of  the  American  who  drew  the 
attention  of  a  patriotic  Briton  to  a  gorgeous  sunset 
here?  The  Britisher  replied, 'Sunset?  Ah!  you 
should  see  one  of  Her  Majesty's  sunsets  !' " 

Grace  laughed  heartily. 

"  That  is  very  cruel  of  you,  Dr.  Parr.  I  wanted 
to  say  such  a  number  of  nice  things  to  you,  and 
now  I  can't.  I  shall  have  to  pour  them  all  out  to 
Mr.  Chudleigh,  who  won't  call  my  appreciation 
'  condescension.' " 

Here  a  name,  bandied  across  the  table,  struck 
Grace's  ear. 

"Planter  has  cornered  the  market,  they  say." 


A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  159 

"He  has  high  Scriptural  authority  for  do- 
ing so,"  said  Chudleigh.  "Joseph  cornered  the 
market,  and  made  a  very  good  thing  out  of  it." 

"  I  suspect  that  is  more  than  Planter  will  do," 
struck  in  the  general.  "He  will  come  to  grief 
some  day  with  his  gigantic  speculations." 

"  What !"  cried  May  Clayton,  with  her  chir- 
ruping little  voice,  "has  he  bitten  off  more  than 
he  can  chew  ?" 

Ballinger  laughed  immoderately.  Probably  this 
turned  Miss  Clayton's  attention  more  directly  to 
him. 

'  "  By  the  bye,  Sir  Mordaunt,  is  it  true  that  you 
are  going  to  give  up  your  baronetcy,  and  become 
an  American  citizen  ?" 

"You  have  given  me  too  little  encourage- 
ment," he  replied,  promptly,  with  a  stage  sigh. 

"Well!"  she  said,  "I  don't  know  about  en- 
couragement. I  should  say  you  have  neglected 
your  opportunities.  But  I  believe  you  followed 
ray  advice.  Only  take  care  you  don't  bark  up 
the  wrong  tree." 

"There's  such  a  forest,"  he  said.  "It's  awfully 
confusing." 

Grace  had  some  conversation  with  her  hostess 
after  dinner. 

The  Caldwells  were  to  leave  New  York  for  their 
home  in  the  Rocky  Mountains  in  the  course  of  a 


100  A   VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY 

week.  It  was  arranged  that  Grace  should  write 
to  Mrs.  Caldwell  when  she  and  her  brother  went 
westward,  and  Mrs.  Frarapton  was  included  in 
the  cordial  invitation  to  "Falcon's  Nest"  offered 
to  the  English  travellers. 

"  I  like  Mrs.  Caldwell,"  said  Mordaunt  as  they 
drove  home.  "She  is  a  good  sort.  The  girl's 
dull." 

"  Not  at  all ;  she  is  young,  and  has  not  lost 
the  sweet  privileges  of  youth  for  remaining  in 
the  background,  as  Miss  Clayton  has." 

"  Give  me  a  girl  who  has  lost  the  privilege, 
then.  I  can't  stand  a  bread-and-butter  miss.  I 
wish  Mrs.  Caldwell  would  ask  Mrs.  Flynn  and  her 
cousin  to  Falcon's  Nest  when  we  are  there  ;  not 
that  I  shall  be  there  for  more  than  a  day  or  two, 
I  fancy.  I  shall  leave  you  and  Aunt  Su,  while  I 
go  off  to  Pueblo,  and  stay  with  Charington  at  his 
ranch." 

"  I  should  not  much  like  to  be  shut  up  with 
Aunt  Su  and  Miss  Clayton,"  returned  his  sister, 
laughing.  "It  would  be  what  you  call  'rather 
warm  quarters.'  I  like  the  girl  myself.  I  am 
sure  there  is  no  harm  in  her — not  half  so  much  as 
there  is  in  many  very  demure  girls — but  I  fancy 
I  see  Aunt  Su's  face  at  her  way  of  going  on.  I 
shouldn't  mind  her  meeting  Miss  Planter,  now," 
she  added,  glancing  with  a  smile  at  him  as  the 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  161 

lamplight  flashed  upon  his  face.     "Miss  Planter 
would  not  offend  her  taste." 

He  did  not  reply,  and  the  rest  of  the  drive 
home  was  performed  in  silence. 
11 


CHAPTER  XI 

THE  ball  of  hospitality  which  had  been  set 
rolling  by  kindly  hands  a  month  since  was 
snatched  from  one  to  another  during  that  last 
week  of  our  travellers'  stay  in  New  York,  and 
seemed  to  acquire  a  more  vigorous  impetus  as  the 
day  of  their  departure  drew  near.  That  this  con- 
stant round  of  social  engagements  was  fatiguing 
to  Grace,  that  she  longed  for  a  little  repose  and 
leisure  for  reflection,  is  true ;  but,  under  the  cir- 
cumstances, perhaps  it  was  as  well  that  this  lux- 
ury was  withheld.  She  had  come  abroad,  as  her 
brother's  companion,  with  the  definite  resolve  to 
put  the  past  behind  her.  For  months  one  subject 
— one  cruel,  gnawing  trouble — had  absorbed  all 
her  thoughts.  It  should  do  so  no  longer.  She 
would  never  suffer  a  hint  of  reproach,  or  a  word 
of  accusation  against  Ivor  Lawrence  to  fall  from 
the  lips  of  either  her  aunt  or  brother  without  de- 
fending him  hotly.  But,  unless  forced  to  do  so, 
she  never  uttered  his  name.  Both  Mrs.  Frampton 
and  Mordaunt  recognized  the  effort  to  dismiss  him 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  163 

from  her  heart.  They  thought  they  were  helping 
her  to  do  so ;  but  they  learned  the  inefficacy  of 
abuse.  Happily,  there  was  a  natural  rebound  in 
her  healthy  temperament  against  sitting  down 
with  folded  hands,  and  doing  nothing  in  this 
world.  Visiting  the  poor  was  not  in  her  line  ;  she 
had  tried  "  slumming  "  in  London,  and  had  found 
it  a  failure — it  was  the  only  thing  which  paralyzed 
her  with  shyness.  The  pursuit  of  science  and  art 
were  equally  foreign  to  her  nature.  The  work 
which  seemed  fitting  and  natural  for  her  just  now 
was  to  be  Mordaunt's  help-mate  and  companion, 
until  such  time  as  he  should  select  one  for  life. 
He  was  not  made  to  be  alone.  And  this  work 
which  her  hand  had  found,  she  would  do,  as  she 
had  done  everything,  with  all  her  might. 

Therefore  it  was  that  she  had  thrown  herself 
frankly  and  without  stint  into  the  stream  of  soci- 
ety in  New  York,  resolved  to  take  what  interest 
and  amusement  she  could  find,  without  letting  any 
one — least  of  all  her  brother — see  the  dark  shadow 
that  obtruded  itself,  from  time  to  time,  across  the 
brilliant  scene.  And  she  had  her  reward.  There 
is  not  so  much  cordiality  in  the  world  that  a  warm- 
hearted girl  can  remain  indifferent  to  such  a  wel- 
come as  had  been  accorded  to  Grace,  even  where 
there  was  not  much  in  common  between  her  and 
her  new  acquaintances.  Some  she  really  liked 


164  A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY 

greatly;  some  had  only  amused  her  ;  towards  all 
she  felt  unaffectedly  grateful  for  the  many  thought- 
ful attentions  she  had  received.  The  Hurlstones 
had  been  persistently  kind,  and  now  proposed  to 
receive  Mrs.  Frampton,  their  old  acquaintance,  on 
her  landing  ;  but,  as  regarded  them,  Grace  could 
not  but  feel  it  was  just  as  well  that  her  brother 
and  she  were  leaving  New  York.  If  the  girl  took 
Mordaunt's  spasmodic  flirtation  seriously,  the 
sooner  he  was  removed  from  her  the  better. 
Grace  was  sceptical  as  to  his  ever  being  very  hard 
hit;  at  all  events,  Beatrice  Hurlstone  was  not  the 
one  to  deal  the  decisive  blow. 

As  to  her  other  acquaintances,  the  Caldwells 
and  Mrs.  Siebel  were  those  from  whom  she  parted 
with  most  regret.  The  first  Grace  hoped  soon  to 
see  again  ;  the  latter  was  to  be  in  Europe  next 
summer,  when  she  and  Miss  Ballinger  would  meet. 
Jem  Gunning  had  gone  to  recover  his  equilibrium 
from  defeat  at  St.  Augustine.  Grace  was  glad  to 
be  spared  any  farewells  from  the  young  million- 
naire.  Mr.  Sims  was  so  peripatetic  that  he  might 
turn  up  anywhere — at  Boston,  or  Chicago,  or  San 
Francisco.  "As  long  as  I  am  this  side  the  grave 
you  are  never  safe  from  me,"  as  he  himself  put 
it.  Mrs.  Van  Winkle  proposed  to  give  a  thk  fu- 
n&bre  on  the  Ballingers'  departure.  She  had  late- 
ly given  one  on  the  death  of  a  third  cousin,  who 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  165 

had  left  her  an  amethyst  necklace.  "A  thing  I 
couldn't  wear,  you  know,  and  so  I  sold  it,  and 
spent  the  produce  in  cypress  wreaths  and  immor- 
telles, tied  with  black  ribbon,  with  which  I  deco- 
rated the  room  and  the  tea-table  in  the  poor  thing's 
honor ;  and  though  we  didn't  have  *  funeral  baked 
meats,'  we  ate  '  soupirs?  and  every  one  said  it  was 
charming,  so  original."  But  Grace  declined  the 
proffered  honor,  as  she  was  obliged  to  do  many 
other  entertainments  that  last  week. 

Some  twelve  miles  from  Boston,  but  served  by 
a  branch  railway  which  decants  the  traveller  at  a 
station  hard  by  the  gate  of  the  grounds,  stands  a 
pleasant  gray  stone  house  of  moderate  size,  built 
by  the  late  Mr.  Richardson.  That  talented  archi- 
tect, who  struck  out  a  new  line  in  domestic  build- 
ing, and  created,  it  may  be  said,  the  school  of 
American  architecture  which  is  now  so  flourishing 
throughout  the  land,  never  designed  a  more  pict- 
uresque home  than  this  of  Brackly.  The  low  Bj'- 
zantine  arch,  beneath  which  the  front-door  steps 
ascend,  and  then  turn  sharp  to  the  right  hand ;  the 
heavy  mullioned  bay-window  and  corner  turret 
with  its  sharp  pinnacle  and  wide  range  of  outlook, 
over  the  cliffs  and  down  to  the  sea ;  the  steep- 
pitched  red  roof  and  stone  balcony  thrust  out 
from  a  recessed  window  under  another  arch ;  the 
heavy  oak  door  with  its  old  Venetian  knocker 


166  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

of  wrought  iron — every  feature  is  agreeable  and 
harmonizes.  And  the  face  of  this  delightful  dwell- 
ing, on  the  summit  of  a  green  slope,  surrounded 
by  fine  beeches,  is  as  the  face  of  a  friend  from 
the  Old  World  to  the  traveller  who  has  just 
left  behind  him  the  hideous  uniformity  of  city 
streets.  The  trees  were  still  bare  ;  through  the 
rich  brown  earth  of  the  flower-beds  not  even  a 
crocus  had  as  yet  thrust  its  golden  head  ;  but  the 
sea  beyond  the  sand-hills  was  very  blue,  and  the 
logwood  down  by  the  lake  made  a  spot  of  crim- 
son color  against  the  gray-green  bank. 

Grace  lingered  for  an  instant  on  the  door-step. 

"  How  lovely  !"  she  cried. 

"  There  ought  to  be  ducks  there.  By  Jove  !  I 
see  some,"  said  Mordaunt. 

Then  they  turned  into  the  oak-panelled  hall. 
A  curtain  of  old  Flemish  tapestry  was  lifted  at 
the  farther  end,  and  Mrs.  Courtly,  as  lithe  as  a 
girl  of  fifteen,  with  a  garden  hat,  an  apron,  and  a 
pair  of  scissors  in  her  hand,  ran  towards  them. 

"  Welcome  to  Brackly !  So  glad  to  see  you 
both.  And  you  have  brought  fine  weather.  It 
snowed  yesterday — I  was  in  despair.  You  like  my 
little  home  ?  I  am  so  glad.  It  is  not  like  your 
grand  English  places,  but  the  view  is  pretty,  and 
the  house  comfortable,  I  hope." 

"There  is  comfort  for  the  eyes,  and  comfort  for 


A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  167 

the  mind,  I  see,"  said  Grace,  looking  round  her, 
"  as  well  as  for  the  body." 

"Those  were  wonderful  cobs  that  brought  us 
from  the  station,"  said  Mordaunt.  "I  never  sat 
behind  better  steppers." 

"  You  shall  sit  behind  something  better  to-mor- 
row, Sir  Mordaunt — one  of  our  fast  trotters ;  but 
come  into  the  parlor,  or,  as  you  would  say,  the 
drawing-room." 

She  lifted  the  portiere  again  and  they  entered 
a  long  apartment,  with  deep  bay-windows,  at  the 
farther  end  of  which  was  a  dai's,  raised  upon  three 
steps,  where  stood  the  piano.  From  this  "coign 
of  vantage,"  the  view  over  the  sand-hills  to  the 
sea  was  more  extensive ;  and  here  some  rocking- 
chairs,  and  a  table  covered  with  books,  showed 
that  it  was  a  favorite  corner  with  Mrs.  Courtly 
and  her  friends.  On  the  walls  of  this  room  were 
a  few  good  Italian  pictures,  not  too  many ;  one  or 
two  fine  plates  of  Maestro  Giorgio,  and  Spanish 
lustre  ware,  with  silver-bound  missals  and  ivory 
caskets,  in  an  old  English  glazed  cabinet ;  in  an- 
other some  rare  books.  But  the  place  had  not  the 
air  of  a  curiosity-shop,  nor  was  the  first  impres- 
sion you  received  one  of  stupefaction  at  what  it 
must  all  have  cost.  Thoroughly  comfortable 
chairs,  the  last  new  books  and  magazines,  the 
score  of  "  Parsifal "  upon  the  desk  of  the  open 


168  A.   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

piano — these  touches  of  modernity  and  cultivation 
"  up  to  date  "  disarmed  the  Philistine  who  might 
be  disposed  to  charge  the  collector  of  these  treas- 
ures with  aesthetic  affectation. 

"  How  charming  it  all  is  !"  exclaimed  Grace. 
"I  never  saw  a  more  delightful  'lady's  bower.' 
It  seems  as  if  nothing  but  what  is  refined  could 
live  here — nothing  but  sunshine  enter  those  win- 
dows!" 

"  Ah  !  it  is  twelve  years  old;  it  has  already  had 
its  share  of  storm  and  showers."  She  sighed,  and 
then,  turning,  said, "  I  see  you  are  looking  at  my 
portrait,  Sir  Mordaunt.  It  is  by  Michael  Angelo 
Brown.  Do  you  like  it  ?" 

"No,  I  think  it  is  horrid.  It  doesn't  do  you 
justice,  Mrs.  Courtly." 

"And  I  think  it  masterly,"  said  his  sister. 

"  He  has  caught  that  enigmatical  expression 
that  reminded  me,  when  I  first  saw  you,  of  Leo- 
nardo's '  Gioconda.' " 

"I  am  pleased.  You  are  the  second  person 
who  has  said  that.  I  shall  tell  Brown." 

"You  may  add  also  what  I  say,"  said  Mor- 
daunt, laughing,  "  that  it  doesn't  do  you  a  bit  of 
justice." 

"Oh!  you  are  a  flatterer  and  a  Philistine,  Sir 
Mordaunt.  You  prefer  prettiness  to  individuality. 
The  New  School,  which  Brown  represents  here, 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  169 

rather  courts  ugliness  ;  certainly  would  rather 
have  ugliness  than  lose  individuality." 

"  I  know.  I've  seen  a  whole  lot  he  did  of  Mrs. 
Van  Winkle.  I  thought  them  all  beastly.  Mrs. 
Van  Winkle  fencing,  apparently  in  a  vapor  bath; 
Mrs.Van  Winkle  yawning — no,  singing,  I  suppose 
it  is,  because  she  is  at  the  piano,  with  one  hand 
up,  and  her  little  finger  stuck  out  at  right  angles 
with  her  hand.  Forgive  me  if  I  say  it  is  all  so 
damned  affected." 

"  You  talk  of  what  you  don't  understand, 
Mordy,"  said  Grace,  impatiently.  "  Both  those 
pictures  are  very,  very  clever." 

Mrs.  Courtly  gave  her  low,  rippling  laugh. 

"I  like  the  fresh  expression  of  opinion.  One 
so  seldom  gets  it.  Mrs.  Planter — you  know  the 
Planters  ? — stood  dumb  before  my  portrait  for  a 
minute  or  two.  Then  she  said  the  chiaro-oscuro 
was  wonderful." 

"  I  should  like  it  better  if  it  were  more  chiaro 
and  less  oscuro"  laughed  Mordaunt  in  reply.  " Is 
she  a  fool  ?" 

"  By  no  means.  She  is  a  dear  woman,  only  she 
has  not  the  courage  of  her  opinions.  She  is  so 
anxious  to  be  amiable.  They  arrived  this  morn- 
ing, and  are  gone  up  to  their  rooms  to  rest.  I 
expect  Quintin  Ferrars  presently,  and  two  great 
friends  of  mine  from  Boston — George  Laffan,  the 


170  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

author,  and  Burton,  a  young  musician,  whose  com- 
positions I  think  charming." 

"I  shall  be  quite  out  of  it  among  all  this 
talent !"  sighed  Mordaunt ;  and  he  shrugged  his 
shoulders,  with  a  smile. 

"  How  absurd  you  ace,  Sir  Mordaunt !  Is  he 
accustomed  to  have  compliments  paid  him  all  the 
time,  Miss  Ballinger?  Is  he  fishing?" 

"  He  has  had  too  many  since  he  landed.  Don't 
increase  the  evil,  Mrs.  Courtly.  It  is  quite  time 
we  went  to  the  Wild  West.  In  New  York  we 
both  ran  the  risk  of  being  spoiled." 

"We  shall  not  spoil  you  here,"  rejoined  her 
hostess,  with  one  of  her  bright  smiles,  "because 
it  is  what  is  best  in  you,  and  therefore  impossible 
to  spoil,  that  we  Bostouians  shall  chiefly  prize.  I 
claim  to  be  a  Bostonian,  you  know,  because  I  was 
born  there.  Ah !  I  see  you  are  looking  at  that 
small  picture  by  Jansen.  Do  you  recognize  the 
face  ?  It  is  supposed  to  be  Mary  Stuart." 

"She  must  have  had  as  many  heads  as  Cei*- 
berus,"  said  Mordaunt,  "for  no  two  resemble 
each  other." 

"  Pardon  me !  this  is  very  like  the  one  at  Wind- 
sor. Next  it  is  a  Rembrandt  I  bought  at  the 
Demidoff  sale  at  Florence." 

"  How  wonderful,  to  make  an  ugly  old  woman 
so  interesting  !"  Grace  exclaimed.  "  What  an 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  171 

odd  sort  of  battledore  and  shuttlecock  Art  and 
Nature  play  !  One  would  not  be  attracted  by  a 
face  like  a  withered  walnut  till  one  saw  this  ad- 
mirable portrait.  The  next  time  one  saw  it  in  the 
flesh  one  would  be  delighted." 

"Well,  I  shouldn't,"  said  Mordaunt,  moving  on 
to  a  cabinet  of  miniatures.  "  I  like  these  much 
better.  In  miniatures  they  have  always  got  such 
awfully  nice  skins  —  like  velvet.  I  wish  more 
women  in  real  life  had  such  complexions.  That 
must  have  been  a  little  duck — that  woman  with 
the  powdered  hair." 

"  Madame  de  Pompadour — well,  she  was  a  duck, 
in  her  way.  She  swam  in  troubled  waters,  and 
so  did  this  poor  bird,  who  was  more  of  a  swan, 
Marie  Antoinette,  white  and  stately,  with  her  long 
throat.  And  this  is  our  Martha  Washington, 
more  of  the  barn-door  fowl,  and  near  to  her  La- 
fayette, and  further  on  Franklin.  I  love  to  talk 
to  these  historic  ghosts.  I  can  take  up  one  of 
these  miniatures  and  be  carried  right  back  to 
those  days.  1  seem  to  read  all  their  stories  in 
those  faces.  But  here  is  the  tea,  and  more  sub- 
stantial food  than  ghosts  can  give  us." 

Two  servants  entered  with  trays,  which  they 
arranged  on  a  table,  with  an  old  Chelsea  service, 
out  of  which  it  was  manifest  one  could  drink 
nothing  but  a  "  dish  "  of  tea,  and  a  George  III. 


172  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"equipage"  of  silver,  urn-shaped  kettle  and  all. 
Grace  could  have  fancied  herself  in  an  old  Eng- 
lish country-house,  where  all  had  remained  un- 
changed for  the  last  hundred  years. 

Presently  the  Planter  ladies  descended.  It  v/as 
obvious  that  the  "  rest "  they  were  credited  with 
having  required  was  an  euphony  for  elaborate 
toilette.  The  mother's  clothes  became  her  years, 
but  the  daughter  was  so  nobly  beautiful  that  she 
should  have  been  simply  dressed.  Grace,  in  her 
tight-fitting  tweed,  felt  no  feminine  envy  for  the 
gold-braided  waistcoat  and  velvet  jacket,  trimmed 
with  blue  fox,  which  the  girl  wore  ;  here,  in 
the  country,  this  splendor  was  singularly  out  of 
place  ;  even  in  the  city  it  would  have  seemed  to 
English  ideas  a  little  oppressive  on  one  so  young. 
But  the  smile  on  that  beautiful  and  by  no  means 
weak  face  was  so  captivating  that  "the  first  in- 
stalment of  her,"  as  Grace  afterwards  expressed 
it,  could  not  fail  to  please. 

"I  am  so  glad  to  meet  you  in  the  country,"  she 
said,  as  she  sat  down  on  the  sofa  next  to  Grace. 
"One  knows  people  so  much  better  in  the  country. 
Why  would  you  not  come  to  Tuxedo,  when  Jem 
Gunning  asked  us  to  meet  you  ?  "We  had  such  a 
good  time.  But  it  would  have  been  ever  so  much 
better  if  you  had  come." 

"It  is  very  kind  of  you  to  say  that,  but  I  never 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  173 

promised  Mr.  Gunning  to  go  to  Tuxedo.  I  should 
have  been  very  glad  to  have  met  you,  but — I  am 
sure  this  is  much  nicer  than  Tuxedo." 

"Of  course  it  is.  Brackly  is  just  like  an  Eng- 
lish house,  isn't  it  ?" 

"Yes,  and  that,  I  see,  is  a  compliment  in  your 
eyes." 

"I  should  think  so  !  I  love  England.  Do  you 
know  Wraxford  ?  No?orBinly?  This  remind- 
ed me  a  little  of  Binly." 

"I  should  have  thought  the  duke  had  too  many 
places  for  any  of  them  to  look  as  much  lived  in 
as  this  does.  That  is  the  advantage  of  having 
only  one  home." 

Miss  Planter  looked  puzzled  for  an  instant  — 
not  longer. 

"If  you  fill  your  house  full  of  friends  all  the 
time,  it  will  soon  get  to  look  lived  in,  I  think. 
You  in  England  understand  all  the  amusements 
of  country  life  so  well.  We  have  no  country  life, 
no  hunting  and  shooting  for  the  men,  to  take 
them  away  from  business  ;  so,  if  we  do  go  to  the 
country,  it's  awfully  slow,  and  we  never  remain 
long." 

"You  have  no  interests,  I  suppose?  Perhaps 
it  requires  an  education  'to  feel  an  interest  in  a 
village — in  the  school — in  all  the  little  schemes 
that  arise  for  the  welfare  of  the  poor,  in  the  cut- 


174  A   VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY 

ting  of  trees,  and  irrigation  of  the  land,  and  gar- 
dening, and  beautifying  your  property.  Those 
who  really  love  country  life  have  no  end  of  inter- 
ests and  amusements,  independent  of  society." 

"Well,  of  course  I  saw  nothing  of  that  quiet 
sort  of  life.  It  was  boating  or  riding,  lawn  ten- 
nis or  picnics,  with  dancing  or  music  of  an  even- 
ing, all  the  time." 

"And  is  the  result  of  your  experience  that  you 
would  like  to  live  in  England  ?" 

"  Well,  I  don't  know.  I  had  a  very  good  time 
there,  but  I  am  awfully  fond  of  my  own  country, 
my  own  people.  I  would  require  a  great  induce- 
ment to  give  them  up.  I  suppose  the  truth  is,  it 
would  all  depend  on  the  man.  I  should  want  to 
be  very  much  in  love." 

"  I  am  glad  to  hear  that.  It  is  supposed  to  be 
an  antiquated  idea,  as  much  out  of  date  here,  I 
suppose,  as  with  us.  But  as  you  have  made  so 
many  friends  in  England,  if  you  return  there  you 
are  almost  sure  to  find  the  man." 

"I  don't  know  about  that.  Papa  doesn't  want 
me  to  find  him  in  England.  Mamma  doesn't 
mind,  if  the  man  has  a  good  position."  Here 
she  turned,  with  her  lovely  smile,  to  Ballinger, 
and  said,  "  Don't  you  want  to  give  me  some  tea, 
Sir  Mordaunt  ?" 

As  he  handed  the  cup  to  her,  his  sister  read  in 


A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  175 

his  eyes  that  he  wished  for  her  seat  by  Miss  Plan- 
ter ;  so  Grace  rose,  and  joined  the  two  ladies  at 
the  tea-table.  She  could  not  help  thinking  that 
Mrs.  Courtly  was  just  a  little  bored  by  the  con- 
versation of  the  "  dear  woman."  The  desire  not 
to  be  ranked  as  an  ordinary  Pittsburgher,  but  as 
a  person  belonging  to  the  most  exclusive  circles 
in  London  and  New  York,  was  a  little  irritating. 
She  could  talk  of  nothing  else.  Pittsburgh  was 
relegated  to  the  dust-bin  of  things  to  be  swept 
away,  though  there  Pere  Planter  was  still  amass- 
ing his  dollars,  and,  while  he  allowed  his  spouse 
to  spend  them  freely  during  the  greater  part  of 
the  year,  constrained  her  to  join  him  occasionally. 
Grace  sat  by  and  listened  to  Mrs.  Planter's  small 
fry  of  gossip,  floating  in  a  shallow  bath  of  senti- 
ments, and  brought  to  the  surface  to  nibble  from 
time  to  time,  by  an  "Ah  !"  or  "Indeed  !"  from 
her  hostess  ;  much  as  an  indolent  fisher  languid- 
ly casts  a  net,  conscious  that  the  only  fish  to  be 
caught  are  insignificant  and  flabby. 

There  was  a  pleasant  diversion,  however,  before 
long,  caused  by  the  arrival  of  Messrs.  Laffan  and 
Burton.  The  coming  of  the  two  Bostonians  was 
hailed  by  Mrs.  Courtly  with  pretty  demonstrations 
of  pleasure.  She  was  never  afraid  of  showing 
the  satisfaction  she  derived  from  the  presence  of 
her  men  friends ;  and  this  frankness  of  demon- 


176  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

stration  was  sometimes  ill-naturedly  commented 
upon  by  her  own  sex. 

Miss  Ballinger  bad  met  Mr.  Laffan  in  London. 
Wbo  had  not  met  tbat  gracious,  elderly  man  of 
the  world,  who  acted  so  long  as  a  social  bridge 
between  the  two  countries?  The  bridge  is  now 
broken  ;  others  will  arise  in  succession,  but  none 
will  ever  take  exactly  the  place  of  that  which  is 
gone.  It  is  needless  to  describe  one  so  well  known, 
who  was  always  greeted  with  as  much  warmth  in 
London  as  in  his  native  city ;  it  is  enough  to  say 
that  in  Mrs.  Courtly's  house  he  was  a  special  fa- 
vorite, and  a  very  constant  visitor. 

Mr.  Burton,  on  the  other  hand,  was  an  unknown 
quantity  to  Grace.  She  had  never  before  met  a 
romantic-looking  American,  with  tender,  dreamy 
eyes,  and  that  soft,  far-away  manner  which  indi- 
cates a  mind  little  fit  to  cope  with  the  hard  ac- 
tualities of  life.  He  had  none  of  the  brilliant  in- 
cisiveness  common  to  his  countrymen ;  he  would 
have  been  sadly  at  a  loss  in  a  contest  with  May 
Clayton.  But  it  was  not  till  after  dinner,  when 
he  sat  down  to  play,  that  she  realized  how  much 
the  man  lived  in  a  world  of  his  own.  He  seemed 
to  forget  that  he  had  an  audience ;  he  was  talking 
to  himself,  as  it  were,  in  that  sweet  poet's  lan- 
guage which  only  the  chosen  few  can  understand. 
As  his  soliloquy  rambled  on,  through  doubt,  re- 


A   VOYAGE    OP    DISCOVERY  177 

monstrance,  despair,  from  plaintive  elegy  to  wild 
rhapsody,  two  at  least  among  his  hearers  were 
stirred  as  though  they  were  listening  to  the 
passionate  struggles,  the  jubilant  conquest  of 
a  troubled  soul. 

But  Quintin  Ferrars  was  not  one  of  those  to 
whom  music  speaks.  He  had  arrived  very  late, 
and  Grace  had  not  seen  him  till  just  before  dinner. 
At  table  the  conversation  was  general,  but  later 
he  sat  down  by  Grace,  who  was  next  the  piano, 
and  began  talking,  regardless  of  the  fact  that 
Burton  was  playing.  Twice  Grace  placed  her 
finger  on  her  lips,  the  third  time  Mrs.  Courtly 
came  up  and  shook  her  fan  at  him. 

"You  bad  man  !  If  you  want  to  talk,  you  must 
go  into  the  next  room." 

"Won't  you  come,  Miss  Ballinger?"  he  said. 
"  Your  brother  and  Miss  Planter  are  there.  That 
will  equalize  the  company." 

"I  am  sorry  for  their  want  of  taste.  I  prefer 
listening  to  Mr.  Burton." 

Ferrars  said  nothing,  but  retired  to  a  distant 
corner  of  the  room,  and  took  up  the  Century. 
He  spoke  to  no  one  during  the  remainder  of  the 
evening.  Mrs.  Planter  murmured  at  proper  inter- 
vals that  it  was  truly  delightful,  so  intellectual, 
so  metaphysical  (she  pronounced  it  mutterphysi- 
cal).  Mrs.  Courtly  and  Grace  scarcely  spoke,  but 
12 


178  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

silence  is  often  more  eloquent  than  words,  and  in 
his  hostess,  at  least,  the  young  musician  knew  he 
had  a  listener  who  understood  what  it  was  he 
meant  to  say.  It  was  this  power  of  understand- 
ing which  made  Mrs.  Courtly  a  delightful  com- 
panion to  so  many  and  to  such  very  different  sorts 
of  people. 


CHAPTER   XII 

THE  next  day  was  Sunday,  and  when  the  party 
assembled  at  breakfast,  at  half-past  nine,  it  ap- 
peared that  Mrs.  Courtly  had  already  been  to 
early  communion  at  the  neighboring  church. 

"The  carriage  will  be  here  at  eleven  for  any 
one  who  wants  to  go  to  morning  service.  I  am 
going  to  evensong  instead,  and  shall  take  Mr. 
Laffan  for  a  drive  this  morning.  What  will  you 
do,  Miss  Ballinger  ?" 

Grace  said  she  wished  to  go  to  church,  where- 
upon Miss  Planter  declared  she  meant  to  go  also, 
adding, 

"  I  hear  Samuel  Sparks  is  near  here,  and  will 
probably  preach." 

"  Yes,"  said  Mrs.  Courtly.  "  That  is  the  reason 
I  am  not  going." 

"Is  he  not  a  very  great  preacher?"  asked  Grace. 

"Yes,  but  I  do  not  consider  him  orthodox. 
He  is  too  broad  in  his  views  to  suit  me." 

Grace  had  been  under  a  vague  impression  that 
all  American  religion  was  "broad";  she  had  no 


180  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

idea  that  a  section  of  the  community  cherished  a 
rigid  ritualism. 

"Samuel  Sparks  is  a  lovely  man,"  said  Mrs. 
Planter,  shaking  her  head  gently,  "but  perhaps  a 
little  too — " 

Her  criticism  was  left  to  shift  for  itself  as  best 
it  might  in  the  minds  of  her  hearers.  All  the 
men  had  heard  the  famous  preacher  except  Sir 
Mordaunt,  and  he  was  not  a  very  regular  church- 
goer. However,  on  this  occasion,  he  declared  that 
his  curiosity  was  fired,  he  would  accompany  the 
ladies.  Mrs.  Courtly  smiled  blandly  across  the 
silver  urn  at  him. 

"Mrs.  Van  Winkle  will  no  longer  be  able  to 
compare  you  to  Guy  Livingstone.  I  am  glad  you 
go  to  church.  You,  I  know,  Quiutin,  are  past 
praying  for — " 

"  Quite."     He  cut  her  short,  decisively. 

"  In  England  it  is  thought  good  form  for  men 
to  go  to  church.  They  did  so  when  we  stayed 
in  country-houses  there  all  the  time,"  said  Mrs. 
Planter. 

"All  the  time?"  repeated  Sir  Mordaunt,  inter- 
rogatively, with  a  look  of  amused  wonder. 

"Mamma  means  every  Sunday,"  explained  her 
daughter ;  then  added,  laughing,  "  All,  except  a 
few  old  heathens,  politicians,  and  philosophers,  and 
people  who  buried  themselves  in  the  library." 


A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  181 

"  I  am  not  a  politician,  but  I  hope  I  am  a  philos- 
opher," said  Ferrars,  with  a  tolerant  smile. 

"I  am  neither  one  nor  the  other,"  sighed 
Burton,  with  an  appealing  look  at  Mrs.  Courtty. 
"  But  when  the  music  is  bad,  my  soul  is  in  revolt; 
it  makes  me  so  cross,  I  go  away  worse  than  I 
came.  And  the  music  in  your  church  here  is 
very  bad — you  know  it  is,  Mrs.  Courtly." 

So  the  three  drove  off  to  church  together. 
Nothing  in  the  service  invited  comment  (the 
music  being  no  worse  than  the  Ballingers  were 
used  to  in  their  own  country  church),  until  Mr. 
Sparks  began  to  read  the  first  lesson.  He  had 
not  opened  his  lips  till  then.  Apparently  there 
was  a  storage  of  sound  waiting  to  .escape,  and  it 
rushed  forth  with  a  volubility  truly  astounding. 
Ballinger  looked  at  his  sister  with  elevated 
brows.  It  was  clear  that  the  minister  expected 
the  congregation  to  be  conversant  with  the  text 
of  Holy  "Writ ;  otherwise  it  was  impossible  to 
follow  him.  He  read  also  a  portion  of  the  Com- 
munion service  in  a  manner  that  seemed  to  Grace 
little  short  of  irreverent.  But  all  this  was  as 
nothing  compared  to  the  rapidity  of  his  utterance 
when  he  reached  the  pulpit.  His  sermon  was  a 
splendid  piece  of  oratory,  charged  with  noble 
thought,  clad  in  language  that  seemed,  like  light- 
ning, to  strike  and  tear  the  ground.  Then,  as 


182  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

the  thunder  rolled  along,  the  scorn  of  self-seek- 
ing and  of  sloth,  the  denunciation  of  envy  and 
uncharitableness,  fell  like  hail,  smiting  the  con- 
sciences of  some  who  heard.  But  the  electric  ra- 
pidity with  which  the  words  poured  down  was 
such  that,  as  flash  succeeded  flash,  many  of  the 
congregation  were  blinded,  groping  their  way  fee- 
bly, and  clutching  at  his  meaning  here  and  there. 
It  required  long  usage  (and  to  some  of  those 
assembled  he  was  almost  a  stranger)  or  a  sharp, 
retentive  vision,  not  to  be  dazzled  as  the  light- 
ning struck  peak  after  peak,  and  the  wind  swept 
by,  and  the  great  storm  drove  on,  relentless,  with- 
out pause  or  hesitation. 

Miss  Planter  only  removed  her  beautiful  eyes 
from  the  preacher  to  glance  surreptitiously  from 
time  to  time  at  her  companions,  and  judge  of  the 
effect  produced  on  them.  Grace  listened,  eager 
and  absorbed ;  her  brother  gnawed  his  moustache, 
and  looked  ill  at  ease.  When,  at  last,  the  torrent 
of  words  stopped,  and  the  congregation  slid  out 
of  church,  in  various  mental  conditions,  the  Amer- 
ican girl's  curiosity  found  its  vent. 

"  Well  ?"  she  asked,  addressing  Mordaunt. 
"  What  do  you  say  ?  Is  he  not  just  wonder- 
ful ?" 

"  Wonderful !  I  believe  you.  I  never  heard 
a  chap  pour  out  so  many  words  to  the  minute 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  183 

before.  It's  perfectly  awful,  going  on  like  this, 
for  more  than  half  an  hour  without  stopping  !" 

"  How  I  wished  I  could  write  shorthand !" 
exclaimed  his  sister.  "  It  is  too  sad  to  think  it 
is  all  gone  beyond  recall.  I  never  heard  any- 
thing so  splendid,  so  stirring  !" 

"I  am  awfully  glad- you  think  so,"  said  Miss 
Planter,  who  clung  fondly  to  the  English  slang 
she  had  acquired.  "I  hoped  that  you,  Sir  Mor- 
daunt,  would  have  felt  a  little  moved.  Samuel 
Sparks  always  does  move  me  so !" 

"Move  me!  Why,  I  felt  as  if  I  were  being 
hurled  down  a  precipice,  and  were  clutching 
wildly  at  twigs,  roots,  anything,  to  save  myself. 
But  it  was  no  use  ;  as  fast  as  I  caught  hold  of 
anything  it  slipped  from  me,  and  I  felt  just  as  if 
I'd  come  an  awful  cropper,  bruised  and  stunned, 
when  he  stopped." 

The  conversation  was  renewed  at  luncheon, 
when  Mrs.  Courtly  expressed  a  desire  to  know 
how  her  English  guests  had  been  impressed  by 
the  famous  preacher.  Her  feelings  as  a  patri- 
otic American  and  a  stanch  churchwoman  were 
divided.  Miss  Ballinger  satisfied  one  sentiment, 
Sir  Mordaunt  the  other. 

"As  far  as  I  could  make  out,"  he  said,  "it  was 
more  of  a  lecture  than  a  sermon.  But  then  I 
made  out  very  little." 


184  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"Whatever  it  was,  it  was  exceedingly  fine," 
said  bis  sister,  with  decision.  "I  have  come  to 
the  conclusion  that  Americans  are  much  more 
eloquent  than  Englishmen.  We  have  no  orator 
in  either  House  to  compare  with  Mr.  Sparks." 

"  A  preacher  has  every  other  sort  of  orator  at 
a  disadvantage,"  said  Ferrars,  grimly.  "  He  can 
say  what  he  likes,  he  can  scourge  you,  without 
fear  of  reprisal." 

"Yes,"  said  Mrs.  Courtly,  "and  there  must 
have  been  many  present,  who — like  myself — ob- 
ject not  only  to  Mr.  Sparks's  manner,  but  to  his 
doctrine.  His  ability  is  undoubted,  of  course." 

"How  is  it,  Mrs.  Courtly,  that  he  comes  to 
be  preaching  in  a  ritualistic  church?"  asked 
Grace. 

"  In  former  years  the  division  was  very  great. 
Doctrine  was  paramount — before  eloquence,  or 
anything.  Latterly  there  has  been  a  growing 
tendency  to  let  pastors  of  different  views  change 
pulpits.  It  is  a  practice  I  do  not  care  about,  but 
I  suppose  it  has  its  advantages." 

"  If  people  icill  be  preached  at,"  said  Ferrars, 
"  it  is  better  that  the  subject  should  be  looked  at 
from  different  points  of  view,  with  more  freedom 
and  liberty  than  from  the  narrow  plane  of  one 
parsonic  mind." 

"  Oh,  my  !     Mr.  Ferrars,"  exclaimed  Mrs.  Plan- 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  185 

ter,  "  why  should  ministers  have  narrower  minds 
than  any  one  else  ?" 

"I  did  not  say  they  had.  All  minds  looking 
at  one  subject  from  one  point  of  view  become 
narrow.  I  know  mine  has,"  he  muttered.  Then, 
with  a  satirical  smile,  "  And  yours.  Like  a  good 
mother,  it  is  concentrated  on  your  daughter,  and 
I  am  sure  you  only  take  one  view  of  her  future. 
You  can't  take  an  all-round  survey  of  the  posi- 
tion." 

Mrs.  Planter  bristled  ;  she  did  not  know  how 
to  receive  this  odd  speech.  As  she  said  after- 
wards to  Mrs.  Courtly,  "  it  was  so  very — " 

But  her  amiable  hostess  threw  herself  into  the 
breach.  With  a  smile  at  the  girl,  who  was  color- 
in^,  "There  can  be  but  one  view  of  Clare's  fut- 

O' 

ure,"  she  said,  quickly.  "She  has  already  most 
of  the  good  things  of  this  world.  She  will  find 
the  best,  and  be  clever  enough  to  know  when  she 
has  found  it." 

It  was  a  clear,  still  afternoon,  though  very 
cold.  The  recent  snow  had  left  the  roads  ankle- 
deep  in  slush,  which  there  had  been  neither  frost 
nor  wind,  the  previous  day,  to  dry.  Now  it  was 
freezing,  but  not  hard  enough  to  affect  the  mud 
to  any  depth.  The  road  on  which  all  the  party 
set  out  to  walk  was  certainly  very  bad  ;  it  would 
have  been  difficult  to  match  it  in  any  country 


186  A   VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY 

district  in  England  ;  but  then,  they  did  not  walk 
on  the  road.  The  system,  unknown  in  England, 
of  laying  down  planks  on  the  wayside  for  pedes- 
trians, secured  them  a  dry  foot-path.  But  only 
two  could  walk  abreast.  Mr.  Burton  had  timidly 
endeavored  to  place  himself  beside  Grace ;  Fer- 
rars's  dominant  perseverance,  however,  secured 
that  privilege. 

"You  behaved  very  ill  last  night,  Mr.  Fer- 
rars,"  began  Miss  Ballinger,  with  her  character- 
istic fearlessness;  "and  again  to-day  at  lunch- 
eon. You  sulked,  because  you  were  not  allowed 
to  talk,  and  because  I  wanted  to  listen  to  the 
music ;  and  to-day  you  attacked  poor  Mrs.  Plan- 
ter in  a  most  unjustifiable  way." 

"I  am  not  aware  that  I  attacked  her.  I  said 
her  thoughts  were  concentrated  on  her  daughter's 
future—" 

"  You  know  very  well  what  you  meant ;  and 
she  knew.  Cynics  like  you  are  always  crying  out 
against  the  follies  and  weaknesses  of  the  world, 
and  you  have  just  as  many  yourselves.  It  is 
Hudibras  over  again — what  you  are  '  inclined  to ' 
and  what  you  '  have  no  mind  to.' " 

"I  dare  say  you  are  right,"  he  returned,  with 
unusual  gentleness  ;  "  but  if  you  knew  how  the 
world  has  treated  me,  you  would  be  more  lenient 
in  your  judgment,  you  would  understand  how  I 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  187 

have  come  to  be  misanthropic  and  bitter.  Per- 
haps some  day  you  may  know." 

She  felt  sorry  for  him  ;  she  liked  the  man,  with 
all  his  faults  ;  perhaps  she  was  not  superior  to 
the  womanly  love  of  influence  over  one  whom 
few  attracted.  But  her  clear  sense  prevented  her 
being  blinded  by  the  sophism  of  his  defence,  and 
she  said,  impulsively, 

"You  expect  leniency,  but  you  show  none. 
And,  then,  you  are  like  a  spoiled  child,  sulking,  as 
you  did  last  night,  or  running  away,  as  you  did 
more  than  once  in  New  York,  because  somebody 
came  into  the  room  you  did  not  like  !  I  think 
suffering  ought  to  make  men  stronger,  not  weak- 
er, Mr.  Ferrars." 

"You  are  severe,  but  you  don't  understand — 
you  can't."  He  beat  the  long,  yellow  grass,  that 
sprang  up  beside  the  planks,  with  the  blackthorn 
in  his  hand.  "  If  I  were  under  your  influence  al- 
ways," he  added,  in  a  low  voice,  "  I  should  become 
more  tolerant,  I  believe.  I  should  look  at  things 
from  a  different  point  of  view." 

"  Oh  !  If  I  were  your  sister,"  laughed  Miss 
Ballinger,  "I  should  lecture  you.  I  should  keep 
you  in  better  order.  As  it  is,  I  can't  think, 
judging  by  your  conduct,  that  my  presence  has 
a  very  beneficial  effect." 

"  Perhaps  not  at  the  time ;  it  marks  the  con- 


188  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

trast  more  strongly."  He  paused  a  moment ;  how 
could  he  explain  his  feelings  without  startling 
her?  And  yet  he  felt  some  explanation  of  this 
enigmatical  sentence  was  needed.  "  You  see,"  he 
continued,  "I  have  avoided  society  for  years.  I 
suppose  I  have  become  brutalized.  I  have  lost 
the  habit  of  concealing  what  I  think,  or  doing 
what  bores  me.  When  I  see  you  with  such 
people  as  the  Hurlstones,  or  Mrs.  Van  Winkle, 
or  these  Planters,  my  contempt  of  the  world  is 
increased.  I  want  to  talk  to  you  or  to  go  right 
away.  If  I  enter  into  general  conversation,  I 
am  sure  to  say  something  which  will  offend 
them." 

"So  little  self-restraint  ?  That  comes  from  hav- 
ing shut  yourself  away  from  people,  and  hav- 
ing had  your  own  way  too  long.  All  the  men  I 
have  heard  you  speak  so  slightingly  of,  because 
they  devote  their  whole  time  and  energies  to 
amassing  big  fortunes,  lead  really  healthier  lives 
than  you  do.  They  rub  up  against  all  manner  of 
people ;  they  give  and  take." 

"  They  take  more  than  they  give,"  he  said,  with 
a  sneer;  "and  because  they  rub  up  against  all 
manner  of  people,  they  become  callous.  Is  it  well 
to  become  callous?  to  grow  indifferent — almost 
blind  to  evil  ?  to  pass  through  life  shrugging  one's 
shoulders?  Well,  perhaps  it  is.  And  yet,  I've 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  189 

had  enough  to  make  me  callous.  But  one  can't 
alter  one's  nature." 

"  That  is  the  defence  of  every  one  who  gives 
in,"  she  returned.  "And  it  is  horribly  Aveak — 
quite  unworthy  of  a  man,  /  think.  I  am  a  great 
hero-worshipper,  and  all  my  heroes  fight  some- 
thing— either  their  own  passions,  or  something 
else  they  are  resolved  to  conquer.  And,  as  to 
growing  callous,  I  don't  see  that  any  one  need  be- 
come so  because  he  mixes  with  his  fellow-creat- 
ures, even  the  very  worst.  We  have  a  Great 
Example  of  that;  and  all  the  devoted  workers 
among  the  poor  of  big  cities  do  not  lose  their 
sense  of  right  and  wrong  because  they  are  pitiful 
and  forbearing." 

Here  Mrs.  Courtly,  who  was  in  front,  turned 
round.  They  had  reached  the  village,  or  rather 
small  agglomeration  of  houses  of  the  lower  mid- 
dle class — as  they  would  be  called  in  England — 
which  were  clustered  around  the  church.  The  bell 
was  ringing ;  one  or  two  elderly  women,  a  young 
girl,  a  pale-faced  man  carrying  some  books,  were 
hurrying  along.  Mrs.  Courtly  said, 

"  Here  I  leave  you  ;  and  I  give  Mr.  Laffan  into 
your  charge,  Miss  Ballinger.  What !  Quintin,  are 
you  coming  with  me  to  church?  Well,  wonders 
will  never  cease.  Good-by,  all  of  you,  till  tea- 
time." 


190  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

And  so  the  bright,  genial  little  lady,  with  her 
unwonted  escort,  left  the  rest  of  the  party  to  find 
their  own  way  home. 

Quintin  Ferrars  had  not  entered  a  church  for 
years.  What  prompted  him  to  leave  Grace,  and 
accompany  his  friend?  Was  it  the  girl's  words? 
Was  it  Mr.  Laffan's  joining  her?  Was  it  some 
inexplicable  working  of  conscience? 


CHAPTER   XIII 

A  MAN  who  in  middle  age  falls  passionately  in 
love,  after  many  bitter  disappointments,  is  as  lia- 
ble to  do  foolish  things,  in  this  same  matter,  as  a 
raw  youth  of  twenty.  He  is  blind  once  more. 
Experience  has  taught  him  nothing.  His  hard, 
cruel  insight  into  the  folly  and  weakness  of  oth- 
ers is  now  of  no  avail.  It  may  be  that  he  is  de- 
ceived in  the  woman  ;  or,  as  in  this  case,  that 
his  worldly  wisdom  unaccountably  fails  him  just 
when  it  should  be  of  most  service  to  protect  him 
from  committing  an  irretrievable  error. 

It  was  strange  that  Ferrars  should  mistake  the 
difference  Miss  Ballinger  showed  in  her  manner 
when  talking  to  him  and  to  other  men,  the  keen 
alacrity  with  which  she  listened  to,  and  the  fear- 
less manner  in  which  she  attacked,  many  of  his 
views,  for  growing  interest  of  a  deeper  kind.  He 
misunderstood  her  character,  if  not  completely,  at 
all  events  in  part.  No  woman,  he  believed,  could 
care  so  much  to  convert  a  man  to  her  way  of 
thinking,  who  was  indifferent  as  to  that  man's 


192  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

future.  She  was  not  indifferent ;  this  young 
woman  felt  an  unusual,  almost  a  passionate  con- 
cern about  the  lives  of  those  in  whom  she  was 
interested  ;  and  she  was  sincerely  interested  in 
Quintin  Ferrars.  But  it  was  not  the  sort  of  in- 
terest he  imagined  ;  therein  was  the  initial  error 
of  his  conduct  towards  her. 

On  the  way  from  church  that  evening,  he  sound- 
ed Mrs.  Courtly. 

"Have  you  had  much  conversation  with  Miss 
Ballinger  since  she  arrived  ?" 

"  No  private  conversation.     "Why  ?" 

"  I  saw  a  great  deal  of  her  in  New  York.  We 
met  every  day.  Sometimes  I  was  for  hours  vir- 
tually alone  with  her.  You  can  guess  the  result 
as  regards  myself.  I  thought  I  could  never  care 
for  a  woman  again.  But  I  care  about  this  Eng- 
lish girl  as  I  never  cared  before.  Has  she  ever 
spoken  to  you  about  me  ?" 

"Not  since  we  were  on  board  the  Teutonic. 
She  asked  me  then  about  you,  but  I  told  her  noth- 
ing. I  knew  you  disliked  your  secret  being  talked 
of,  and,  as  it  has  been  so  well  kept,  I  resolved  to 
say  nothing,  unless  absolutely  forced  to  do  so." 
Then,  after. a  pause,  "She  is  not  a  woman  to  be 
lightly  won,  Quintin." 

"No;  but — unless  I  am  an  ass — she  takes  that 
sort  of  interest  in  me  which  may  deepen  into — 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  193 

something  stronger.  What  I  want,  on  all  ac- 
counts, is  time.  And  that  is  just  the  difficulty. 
They  will  only  be  here  a  few  days." 

"  Yes,  they  are  going  west,  after  passing  a  day 
or  two  in  Boston,  when  their  aunt  arrives." 

"And  they  will  leave  America  in  the  spring. 
And  if  I  follow  them  west,  they  will  be  staying 
with  people  I  don't  know.  It  is  time,  you  see,  I 
want — time !" 

"  Do  nothing  precipitate,  at  all  events.  When 
will  you  be  free  ?" 

"Not  for  five  months  yet.  Oh,  my  dear  friend! 
It  seems  such  an  age  now,  before  I  can  throw  off 
those  cursed  bonds;  and  I  had  grown  so  indiffer- 
ent to  them!  My  life  was  blasted,  and  as  long 
as  I  loved  no  other  woman,  it  was  all  one  to  me. 
But  now—1' 

He  broke  off  with  so  deep  a  sigh  that  Mrs. 
Courtly  was  startled.  All  the  way  home  he  talked 
of  this  English  girl,  and  of  nothing  else.  His 
friend  recognized  no  longer  the  man  who  for 
years  had  found  so  little  in  life  to  prize,  to  ad- 
mire, or  to  love. 

On  their  return  home  they  found  Saul  Barham. 
Mrs.  Courtly  had  said  nothing  of  his  coming  for 
the  night ;  she  had  kept  it  as  a  little  surprise  for 
Grace,  who  would  be  pleased,  she  knew,  to  see 
him.  And  she  was  right.  Miss  Ballinger  greeted 
13 


194  A  VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY 

the  young  professor  with  a  warmth  which  made 
Quintin  Ferrars  jealous.  He  had  never  liked  Bar- 
ham.  More  than  once  on  board  the  Teutonic 
their  opinions,  or  something  that  lay  deeper  than 
opinions,  had  clashed.  Ferrars,  so  trenchant  in 
his  judgments,  found  a  man,  fifteen  years  his  jun- 
ior, who  treated  him  more  than  cavalierly;  for 
hesitation  and  diffidence  were  not  among  Saul's 
weaknesses.  The  young  Harvard  professor  felt 
a  certain  contempt  for  this  idle,  wandering  fellow- 
countryman  of  his,  with  his  superior  nil  admirari 
tone  about  their  common  land  ;  and  he  showed  it. 
The  greeting  between  the  two,  therefore,  was  cold, 
almost  to  freezing-point,  on  this  occasion;  and 
Ferrars  was  sore  at  heart  when  he  saw  Grace's 
fair  face  beaming  with  smiles. 

"How  is  your  mother,  to  begin  with?"  she 
asked  ;  and  when  reassured  on  that  point,  "  Have 
you  felt  strong,  yourself,  since  you  returned  to 
work?  You  look  a  little  pale — not  quite  as  well 
as  you  did  after  our  six  days'  voyage." 

"  Of  course  not,"  he  replied,  smiling.  "  The 
Creation  took  six  days.  I  was  re-created  during 
that  voyage.  I  was  another  man.  For  the  last 
two  months  I  have  been  a  worm  again,  grubbing 
in  the  earth,  but,  barring  a  real  little  cough,  I  am 
pretty  well." 

She  thought  him  looking  thin   and  worn,  but 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  195 

said  no  more  on  the  subject.  She  told  him  she 
meant  to  write  to  Mrs.  Barham,  and  propose  her- 
self for  an  afternoon  visit,  as  soon  as  she  and  her 
brother  arrived  in  Boston. 

"She  will  love  to  receive  you,  Miss  Ballinger. 
She  so  often  speaks  of  you  to  me.  She  would  not 
venture  to  ask  you  to  stay,  but  if  any  circum- 
stance should  render  it  possible  for  you  to  pass 
a  few  days  under  our  roof  it  would  be  a  real  joy 
to — us  all." 

"It  would  be  nice  if  I  could  manage  it.  Per- 
haps, if  my  brother  goes  to  meet  my  aunt  in  New 
York,  I  may  be  able,  for  a  couple  of  days — but  I 
am  afraid  you  won't  be  at  home  ?" 

"I  can  run  down  in  the  evenings  to  dine  and 
sleep,  and  back  to  my  work  in  Cambridge  in  the 
morning.  I  very  often  do  it.  It  is  no  distance 
by  rail.  And  I  generally  pass  my  Sunday  at 
home.  You  will  let  me  take  you  over  Harvard 
College,  I  hope  ?" 

"Certainly.  I  am  looking  forward  to  seeing 
Cambridge,  which  is  associated  in  my  mind  with 
so  many  eminent  men.  You  like  your  life  there? 
You  are  happy  ?" 

"I  like  my  work;  I  know  it  is  the  best  thing 
my  hand  can  find  to  do,  and  I  am  told  I  do  it 
successfully.  Then  I  am  in  touch  with  men  of 
congenial  minds.  But  happy — ?"  He  paused, 


196  A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

and  looked  out  on  the  twilight  deepening  into 
night,  with  the  fixed  gaze  in  those  large  gray 
eyes  which  was  so  characteristic  of  him.  "  Hap- 
piness, I  believe,  depends  greatly  on  physical  con- 
ditions. I  am  not  quite  as  strong  as  I  should  like 
to  be.  We  have  a  splendid  gymnasium.  If  I 
could  take  more  athletic  exercise  than  I  do,  I  dare 
say  I  should  have  more  even  spirits." 

Mrs.  Courtly  here  joined  them,  and  the  little 
tete-d-tete  was  broken  up.  The  lamps  were  brought 
in,  the  shutters  closed.  In  the  meantime  Mrs. 
Planter,  at  the  farther  end  of  the  room,  was  ques- 
tioning Sir  Mordaunt  as  to  the  new  guest,  whom 
Miss  Ballinger  appeared  to  know  so  well. 

"Barham?  I  never  heard  of  the  name.  It 
does  not  belong  to  any  of  our  first  families,  any- 
how." 

"Well  known  in  England,"  said  Mordaunt, 
carelessly.  "'Ingoldsby  Legends,'  you  know." 

"Do  you  mean  there  is  any  legendary  lore  con- 
nected with  the  Barhams  ?  Well,  they  may  have 
come  over  in  the  Mayflower,  but  I  never  heard 
them  mentioned." 

"  No.  I  mean  the  author  of  '  The  Jackdaw  of 
Rheims,'  and  lots  of  other  things — awfully  good 
fun,  you  know— was  a  parson,  named  Barham." 

"  Oh  !  a  minister — oh !  And  what  is  this  young 
man  ?" 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  197 

"A  professor,  I  believe." 

"  He  does  not  look  like  a  well  man.    So  very — " 

"Yes,  very,"  echoed  Ballinger,  impatiently. 
"But  he  makes  up  in  brains,  I  am  told,  what  he 
wants  in  flesh  and  muscle.  My  sister  thinks  a 
great  deal  of  him.  He  is  riot  my  sort  of  man ; 
rather  a  prig,  I  think ;  but  people  have  different 
tastes.  Now  she  couldn't  bear  Gunning,  whom 
I  thought  not  half  a  bad  fellow." 

"  Jem  Gunning  is  not  very  cultivated,  I  admit," 
said  Mrs.  Planter,  authoritatively,  as  though  cul- 
tivation and  she  were  inseparable;  "but  he  is 
very  amiable." 

"  I  don't  think  Grace  cares  for  amiability  alone," 
laughed  her  brother. 

"  Well,  but — he  has  something  else — one  of  our 
greatest  partis  /" 

"  That  wouldn't  affect  her  a  bit.  She  is  a  queer 
girl." 

"  Looks  to  an  alliance  with  your  aristocracy,  I 
conclude  ?" 

He  laughed  again.  "That  is  the  last  thing 
she  would  think  of.  I  believe,  Mrs.  Planter,  you 
think  a  great  deal  more  of  that  in  America  than 
we  do  in  England." 

"Is  that  so?  Well,  I  always  say  to  Mr.  Plan- 
ter there's  nothing  like  your  aristocracy,  Sir  Mor- 
daunt.  I  don't  hold  much  to  foreign  nobility,  but 


198  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVEKY 

English,  when  one  has  once  seen  them  in  their 
home — ah!  they  are  so  very—" 

"Right  you  are,  Mrs.  Planter.  But  hasn't  for- 
eign nobility  a  considerable  value  among  you, 
too?  Look  at  the  fuss  they  made  in  New  York 
with  that  young  Marquis  de  Trefeuille." 

"  Well,  I  always  told  my  daughter  that  he  did 
not  amount  to  much,  though  his  patent  of  nobil- 
ity dates  from  Louis  XV.  Clare  does  not  care 
for  foreigners,  anyway." 

"I'm  glad  you  don't  count  us  as  foreigners. 
After  all,  we  have  the  same  blood,  haven't  we? 
If  we  were  Scotch,  we  might  be  relations.  It  is 
such  rot,  that  jealousy  between  the  two  coun- 
tries." 

Had  he  been  the  most  astute  diplomatist,  he 
could  not  have  made  a  speech  better  calculated 
to  please  Mrs.  Planter.  She  said  to  her  daughter, 
as  they  dressed  for  dinner,  that  she  had  always 
liked  Sir  Mordaunt  Ballinger,  but  she  found  him 
now  really  too  nice  for  anything. 

The  beautiful  Clare  murmured  something  which 
was  not  very  intelligible  to  her  mother.  Indeed, 
her  daughter's  sentiments  on  this  subject  were 
not  clear  to  her  fond  parent.  The  girl  had  been 
having  a  "  good  time  "  to-day,  in  almost  uninter- 
rupted flirtation  with  the  English  baronet.  But 
Mrs.  Planter  attached  no  undue  importance  to 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  199 

this.  She  knew  her  daughter  too  well.  Clare  had 
all  the  wisdom  of  her  countrywomen  in  the  con- 
duct of  such  affairs :  she  would  never  lose  her 
head ;  she  would  never  be  led,  by  vanity,  or  ten- 
derness, or  passion,  to  commit  herself,  until  she 
was  satisfied  that  this  was  the  man,  and  none 
other,  she  ought,  and  desired  to  marry.  Herein 
she  showed  her  superiority  to  the  English  girl, 
who  becomes  quickly  intoxicated,  loses  all  balance 
of  judgment,  and  plights  her  troth  in  a  flood  of 
foolish  words,  which  she  often  bitterly  regrets. 
We  are  apt  to  call  the  American  cold  and  heart- 
less. She  is  not  necessarily  so  because  she  seems 
to  be  playing  with  a  man,  much  as  a  cat  does 
with  a  mouse.  It  may  be  that  she  is  worldly  and 
calculating ;  it  may  be  that  she  is  diverting  her- 
self at  her  adorer's  expense.  But  there  is  the 
other  possibility :  she  may  be  gauging,  in  the  only 
way  a  woman  can  gauge,  the  man's  character,  and 
the  measure  of  her  liking  for  him.  She  does  not 
succumb  to  his  personal  charm,  to  his  fervent 
admiration,  at  once ;  she  wants  to  know  more  of 
him,  and,  having  very  keen  perceptions,  builds  up 
her  knowledge  from  all  the  chance  words  he  lets 
fall.  It  is  true  that  she  responds  to  his  advances, 
that  she  "encourages"  him,  as  we  call  it,  more 
than  custom  approves  in  England  ;  but  she  looks 
upon  the  game  as  a  fair  one,  entailing,  as  she  con- 


200  A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

ceives,  but  small  damage  to  either  party.  Ever 
since  she  was  a  little  girl  she  has  known  that 
man  is  a  predatory  animal,  seeking  whom  he 
may  devour.  She  has  no  idea  of  being  devoured  ; 
least  of  all  when  she  is  a  great  heiress,  fully  con- 
scious how  many  hunters  are  on  her  track.  No  ! 
she  will  fight  them  with  their  own  weapons,  and 
when  she  yields  it  will  not  be  fi'om  ignorance  of 
their  vulnerable  points. 

In  this  case  Grace,  who  watched  her  brother's 
movements  with  keen  interest,  could  not  make  up 
her  mind  how  far  either  or  both  players  were  in 
earnest.  Mordaunt  had  an  unlimited  capacity  for 
flirtation  ;  but  under  that  thin  surface  of  chaff 
and  protestation,  with  which  he  met  the  attack  of 
every  pretty  woman,  there  were  layers  of  suscep- 
tibility, which  had  more  than  once  been  pierced. 
This  careless,  impudent  young  Englishman,  with 
all  his  faults,  had  a  heart.  It  had  been  touched, 
though  happily  not  very  seriously,  before  now. 
But  if  this  state  of  things  went  on  for  several 
days,  and  if  the  girl  had  a  stronger  head  than 
her  brother  (which  Grace  never  doubted),  and  was 
only  amusing  herself,  how  would  it  be  with  Mor- 
daunt then  ?  She  had  not  seen  enough  of  Clare 
Planter  to  determine  whether  she  wished  her  for 
a  sister-in-law;  but  she  was  quite  sure  she  had  no 
prejudice  against  her  on  the  score  of  nationality. 


A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  201 

If  the  girl  should  care  for  him,  and  if  her  char- 
acter was  one  likely  to  make  him  happy,  Grace 
would  further  her  brother's  wishes  by  every 
means  in  her  power. 

Her  reflections  did  not  take  this  substantive 
form  till  Tuesday  morning.  The  Sunday  evening 
had  been  very  pleasant  to  every  one  but  Ferrars. 
Burton  had  played,  and  Saul  Barham  had  sat  be- 
side Grace,  and  a  few  words  had  passed  now  and 
again  during  the  intervals  of  the  music.  There 
was  a  bond  of  sympathy  between  them  which,  for 
the  time  being,  required  no  other  language.  Mor- 
daunt  and  Clare  were  not  so  easily  satisfied.  At 
the  farther  end  of  the  long  room,  where  their  whis- 
pers could  not  reach  Mrs.  Courtly,  they  lay  back 
on  a  settee,  the  shaded  lamp-light  defining  dimly 
the  silhouette  of  their  two  heads,  and  touching 
more  sharply  the  edges  of  the  girl's  pink  and  sil- 
ver dress  and  the  tips  of  patent-leather  which  ter- 
minated the  man's  long  legs,  crossed  one  over  the 
other.  That  was  the  picture  which  often  rose 
before  Grace's  eyes  when  she  pondered  on  what 
her  brother's  fate  would  be.  The  actual  dialogue 
would  not  have  struck  an  eavesdropper  as  senti- 
mental. But  then  there  are  so  many  different 
avenues  to  the  citadel  of  the  affections. 

She  was  fond  of  referring  to  England.     "  Have 
you  ever  stayed  at  Lord  Grantham's  ?" 


202  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  No.  He  never  asked  me,  and  I  shouldn't  have 
gone  if  he  had." 

"Why  not?" 

"  Oh  !  I  don't  know.  He's  not  in  my  set.  I 
shouldn't  meet  any  one  I  knew  there." 

"That  is  very  civil  to  me  !  We  stayed  there 
quite  a  number  of  times.  Pray,  why  is  he  not  in 
'  your  set '  ?  Is  he  not  of  as  good  a  family  as  there 
is  in  England  ?" 

"Yes.  It's  a  very  old  title.  But  rank  isn't 
everything.  That  is  a  mistake  Americans  are  so 
apt  to  make.  Men  of  rank  are  not  always  much 
thought  of  in  society." 

"  Well,  I  don't  care  whether  he  is  much  thought 
of  or  not,  I  think  he  is  a  very  nice  fellow." 

"  If  I  had  known  he  was  such  a  great  friend  of 
yours,  I  wouldn't  have  said  a  word.  You  asked 
me." 

She  laughed.  "  How  funny  Englishmen  are  ! 
I  see  I  must  never  ask  one  man  his  opinion  of  an- 
other, unless  he  belongs  to  the  same  club — if  I 
don't  mean  him  to  be  sniffed  at.  Well !  I  am 
never  influenced  by  any  one's  opinion.  If  I  like 
people,  I  like  them,  and  if  I  don't,  I  don't." 

"  Capital !  You  have  the  courage  of  your  opin- 
ions. So  few  girls  have  the  pluck  to  do  that,  to 
stick  to  what  they  think.  I  wonder  if  you  will 
always  remain  like  that." 


A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  203 

She  was  playing  with  her  fan,  and  looked  up, 
to  find  his  eyes  fixed  upon  her.  She  laughed 
lightly. 

"  I  have  been  chaffed  pretty  badly  about  being 
an  Anglomaniac  since  I  returned  home  ;  but  I 
don't  mind.  I  like  England  and  Englishmen.  I 
don't  care  so  much  about  Englishwomen.  They 
are  kind  of  condescending,  I  find,  and  I  suspect 
they  are  a  little  jealous  of  us — so  many  of  our 
girls  having  carried  off  their  young  men.  In 
short,  I  believe  our  best  time  with  you  is  over." 

"Why  do  you  say  that?  I  thought  people 
were  so  very  civil  to  you  ?" 

"So  they  were  —  many  of  them  —  more  than 
civil ;  but  my  eyes  and  ears  were  wide  open.  I 
saw  things — I  heard  things  said  about  me ;  and  I 
know  we  were  refused  invitations  to  several  balls 
because  we  were  American." 

"  No,  only  because  society  is  already  much  too 
big  for  our  small  houses ;  and  as  to  jealousy, 
isn't  that  a  feminine  form  of  appreciation  ?" 

"Do  males  rise  superior  to  it?" 

They  both  laughed. 

On  the  Monday  morning,  Barham  returned 
early  to  Cambridge,  and  Ferrars  had  the  field 
once  again  to  himself. 

Soon  after  breakfast  a  buggy  came  round,  drawn 
by  a  famous  American  trotter,  who  had  won  sev- 


204  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVEKY 

eral  races,  and  who,  to  the  uninitiated,  was  as 
ugly  a  specimen  of  the  equine  race  as  could  well 
be  seen.  His  long  straight  neck,  poked  forward, 
his  flat  back,  and  his  action  in  walking  or  am- 
bling, were  utterly  opposed  to  the  Greek,  or  even 
the  mediaeval,  conception  of  what  a  horse  should 
be,  and  how  he  should  move.  It  appeared,  more- 
over, that  this  wonderful  pace,  which  was  the 
animal's  specialite,  could  not  be  maintained  for 
more  than  a  mile  or  so.  Therefore,  for  all  prac- 
tical purposes,  it  seemed  a  useless  gift,  purchased 
at  the  sacrifice  of  grace  and  beauty ;  but  perhaps 
Grace  was  the  only  one  present  who  thought 
this.  Mordaunt,  for  whose  special  delectation 
the  buggy  was  brought,  was  invited  by  Mrs. 
Courtly  to  take  Miss  Planter  for  a  drive.  Of 
course  he  was  delighted ;  the  girl  did  not  hesi- 
tate ;  only  Mrs.  Planter  thought  fit  to  say  to 
Grace, 

"  We  should  not  do  this  in  England,  of  course, 
but  here  in  the  country,  you  know,  and  especial- 
ly in  the  West,  where  we  live,  the  young  people 
drive  out  together,  all  the  time." 

"  If  it  is  the  custom,  why  not  ?" 

"  I  was  afraid  you  might  think  it  sort  of  strange. 
But  I  assure  you  Clare  has  been  very  strictly 
brought  up." 

Mordaunt's  declaration  on  his  return  was  that 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  205 

he  had  never  enjoyed  a  drive  so  much  in  his  life, 
and  his  untiring  attendance  upon  Clare  during 
the  remainder  of  the  day  first  made  Grace  think 
seriously  of  his  condition.  She  lay  awake  some 
time  that  night,  and  her  meditations  ended  in  a 
resolve  to  speak  to  Mrs.  Courtly.  It  was  curious 
that  hitherto  she  had  not  found  an  opportunity 
of  being  alone  with  her  hostess  for  half  an  hour. 
Yet  there  was  another  subject  on  which  she  de- 
sired to  sound  her.  But  Mrs.  Courtly  seemed  to 
live  in  a  round  of  small  excitement,  of  constant 
and  varied  occupation,  the  preparation  or  execu- 
tion of  schemes  for  the  pleasure  of  herself  and 
others,  or  for  the  benefit  of  others  only.  When 
driving,  or  walking,  or  sitting  over  the  fire,  she 
expected  some  of  her  men  friends  to  talk  to  her, 
just  as  she  held  it  imperative  that  some  of  them 
should  be  devoted  to  her  women  guests.  She  had 
no  idea  of  allowing  men  to  talk  together,  or  of  en- 
couraging women  to  gossip  with  each  other,  when 
the  opposite  sexes  met.  And  when  did  they  not 
meet  in  her  house  ? 

On  Tuesday  morning  a  cablegram  from  Mrs. 
Frampton,  which  had  been  delayed  two  days  in 
consequence  of  misdirection,  announced  that  she 
was  on  the  eve  of  embarkation  at  Liverpool.  As 
the  cablegram  was  dated  the  previous  Saturday, 
she  might  be  expected  in  New  York  the  follow- 


206  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

ing  Friday,  and  Mordaunt  would  of  course  go 
and  meet  her.  He  and  Clare  would  therefore 
be  but  two  days  more  under  the  same  roof. 
Would  this  precipitate  matters? — or  would  it  be 
the  simple  termination  of  a  pastime  on  both 
sides  ? 

Grace  laid  her  hand  on  Mrs.  Courtly's  arm,  as 
they  were  leaving  the  dining-room. 

"  May  I  come  to  your  boudoir  for  a  few  min- 
utes ?" 

"  Why,  of  course !"  and  she  led  the  way 
to  that  sanctuary  of  religion  and  the  fine  arts, 
defiled  only  in  one  corner  by  account -books, 
business  letters,  and  bills  of  fare. 

"  I  want  to  ask  you  a  straightforward  ques- 
tion," began  Grace,  plunging  boldly  into  the  sub- 
ject uppermost  in  her  thoughts,  without  circum- 
locution. Is  Miss  Planter  a  coquette  ?  Is  she 
trifling  with  my  brother,  or  do  you  think  she 
cares  the  least  about  him?" 

Mrs.  Courtly  smiled  one  of  her  sweet  enig- 
matical smiles. 

"  My  dear  Miss  Ballinger,  is  Sir  Mordaunt  tri- 
fling with  Clare  ?" 

Grace  colored. 

"  You  are  quite  justified  in  returning  my  ques- 
tion. I  do  not  believe  he  is.  If  they  are  thrown 
much  more  together,  I  believe  he  will  be  rendered 


A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  207 

very  unhappy  should  it  prove  that  she  cares  noth- 
ing about  him." 

"  He  tells  me  he  must  go  to  New  York  by  the 
night  mail  on  Thursday." 

"  Yes,  but  we  are  going  west  after  that,  and 
so  are  the  Planters.  If  I  had  an  inkling  of  the 
girl's  real  character,  I  might  either  help  him  or 
save  him  a  great  deal  of  pain." 

"  Clare  Planter  is  a  curious  girl — in  fact,  she  is 
an  American  product,  and  not  like  any  English 
girl.  It  is  impossible  to  tell  what  she  will  do. 
Even  her  own  mother  does  not  know.  I  know 
she  would  be  quite  in  your  brother's  favor,  but 
that  would  have  no  weight  with  Clare,  any  more 
than  opposition  would  have.  She  will  probably 
take  a  long  time  to  make  up  her  mind  as  to  the 
man  she  wishes  to  marry,  but  when  it  is  once 
made  up  nothing  will  change  her." 

"  I  like  that.  I  could  not  wish  a  better  ansAver  to 
my  question.  So  then,"  she  added,  laughing,  "this 
desperate  flirtation  is  based,  on  her  part,  upon  the 
profoundest  principles,  and  a  sense  of  the  impor- 
tance of  knowing  a  man  well  before  you  consent 
to  marry  him  ?  Well,  I  can't  disapprove  of  that — 
only  the  man,  you  see,  may  suffer  in  the  process." 

"  Men  don't  suffer  as  we  do,  my  dear."  She 
gave  a  half-suppressed  sigh.  "At  all  events,  it  is 
never  any  use  interfering  in  these  matters." 


208  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  Certainly.  If  both  are  bent  on  this,  I  would 
be  the  last  to  interfere.  But  if  I  thought  the 
girl  was  leading  him  on  to  propose,  in  order  that 
she  may  refuse  him,  I  would  do  all  I  could,  with 
my  aunt's  help — she  has  immense  influence  with 
Mordaunt — to  save  him  from  a  will-o'-the-wisp 
dance  half  over  America." 

"If  I  understand  Clare — which  I  don't  feel 
certain  I  do — she  will  never  be  the  slave  of  her 
senses.  Flirtation  does  not  affect  her  in  that 
way ;  she  will  never  be  precipitated  into  an  en- 
gagement. She  is  capable  of  strong  attachment, 
but  that  is  a  plant  of  slow  growth.  She  is  gen- 
uinely attached  to  her  father.  If  she  marries  an 
Englishman,  she  will  never  consent  to  be  as  much 
separated  from  her  parents  and  her  country  as 
so  many  American  women  are." 

"  I  am  glad  of  that.  Though  I  confess  I  think 
Mrs.  Planter  a  bore,  I  shouldn't  wish  her  daugh- 
ter to  think  so.  If  you  are  right,  the  girl  has  a 
great  deal  of  character,  and  though  I  see  her 
faults — which  are  partly  those  of  training  and 
association — I  believe  her  good  qualities  would 
preponderate  with  me  in  the  long  run." 

"  I  think  they  would.  She  has  a  rare  power — 
rare  even  for  an  American — of  adapting  herself 
to  the  country,  the  people,  the  circumstances, 
which  surround  her.  If  she  were  stuck  down  in 


A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  209 

a  ranch  in  Texas,  without  a  '  help,'  I  believe  she 
would  make  the  beds  and  cook  the  dinner  as  well 
as  any  one — " 

"  Splendid  !"  cried  Grace,  enthusiastically.  "  I 
thought  her  adaptability  might  be  limited  to  catch- 
ing the  tone  of  society.  I  am  glad  it  has  a  wider 
range.  I  begin  to  hope  now  that  our  parting  on 
Thursday  may  not  be  final." 

"  But  you  are  not  going  on  Thursday?  You 
stay  on  with  me,  I  hope,  and  meet  your  brother 
in  Boston,  when  he  brings  your  aunt  there." 

"  Thank  you  so  much,  but  I  have  written  to 
Mrs.  Barham,  to  ask  if  she  likes  to  receive  me 
for  a  day  or  two." 

Mrs.  Courtly  opened  her  eyes.  "  I  suppose 
you  know  it  is  only  a  very  small  rectory  ?  I  hope 
you  will  be  comfortable." 

"  Oh !  I  am  not  afraid  of  that." 

"  Well,  I  shall  meet  you  in  Boston.  I  will  go  to 
the  Vendome  for  a  few  days — I  often  do  so — in 
order  to  present  you  to  some  of  my  friends.  You 
should  see  something  of  its  society  while  there. 
But  I  am  so  sorry  you  won't  stay  longer  with 
me."  Then  she  added,  in  a  low  voice,  "Quintin 
Ferrars  will  be  in  despair.  He  has  so  few  friends." 

"  Yes,"  said  Grace,  slowly.  "  That  is  a  pity, 
and  I  am  sure  it  is  his  own  fault.  Will  you  tell 
me  something  of  his  past  life  ?  I  am  interested 
14 


210  A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

in  him,  otherwise  I  suppose  I  should  not  care 
what  his  past  had  been.  He  puzzles  me.  I  feel 
there  is  something  to  be  explained,  he  is  so  very 
odd.  But  I  have  not  le  mot  de  Tenigme" 

"  No  one  here  knows  it,  but  it  is  quite  right 
you  should.  I  meant  to  have  told  you  before. 
He  married  a  Spanish  woman  many  years  ago,  a 
widow.  She  was  a  beautiful  creature,  I  am  told, 
and  she  had  an  ample  fortune,  but  she  turned  out 
to  be  thoroughly  bad.  He  left  her  after  a  few 
months,  and  has  never  seen  her  since.  She  re- 
turned to  the  name  of  her  first  husband,  and 
washed  her  hands  of  Quintin.  He  never  took  a 
farthing  of  her  money,  which  she  has  spent  chiefly, 
they  say,  on  Prince  Lamperti — " 

"  Prince  Lamperti !  Do  you  mean  that  that 
woman,  Madame  Moretto,  is  Mr.  Ferrars's  wife  ?" 

"  Yes,  that  was  her  first  husband's  name." 

"  Good  heavens !  that  explains  his  strange  con- 
duct in  New  York.  He  must  have  seen  his  wife 
once  when  he  left  us  suddenly,  and  another  time 
I  remember  his  going  out  of  the  room  abruptly 
when  the  Princess  Lamperti  entered  it.  But  he 
is  divorced,  I  suppose  ?" 

"  No,  not  yet.  I  will  tell  you  the  whole  story. 
Very  few  people  knew  of  his  marriage  ;  he  has 
no  near  relations.  He  was  married  abroad,  and 
during  the  short  time  he  and  his  wife  were  to- 


A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  211 

gether,  he  never  came  to  America.  When  he 
learned  what  she  was,  he  was  so  disgusted  and 
ashamed  that,  as  she  chose  to  return  to  her  first 
husband's  name,  he  thought  it  useless  to  have  the 
scandal  of  a  divorce.  He  felt  sure  he  should  never 
wish  to  marry  again,  himself — he  thinks  differ- 
ently now — and  so  he  tried  to  forget  that  terri- 
ble episode,  though  it  had  left  him  bruised  and 
embittered,  to  a  degree  no  one  who  did  not  know 
him  before  can  imagine.  Lately,  the  Princess 
Lamperti,  finding  it  impossible  to  reclaim  her 
husband,  at  last  decided  to  divorce  him.  Where- 
upon Madame  Moretto  resolved  to  come  over  here, 
and  live  in  the  State  of  Rhode  Island  for  six 
months,  in  order  to  sue  for  her  divorce,  on  the 
plea  of  her  husband's  desertion  and  want  of 
'  maintenance,'  though,  as  she  is  a  rich  woman, 
and  he  comparatively  a  poor  man,  that  is  absurd. 
But  Quintin,  of  course,  did  not  oppose  it;  and 
now  he  is  very,  very  glad.  He  would  have  gone 
on,  a  miserable,  lonely  man,  to  the  end  of  his  life, 
I  suppose,  if  she  had  not  moved  in  the  matter. 
I  hope  now  he  may  find  consolation  and  happi- 
ness in  the  course  of  time." 

"  He  is  certainly  much  to  be  pitied,"  said  Grace, 
a  little  dryly,  as  it  seemed  to  Mrs.  Courtly ;  "most 
of  all,  I  think,  because  his  troubles  seem  to  have 
destroyed  his  belief  in  all  goodness." 


212  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  No,  not  all  goodness  ;  only  the  greater  part 
of  what  passes  as  such.  I  assure  you  he  never 
doubts  yours." 

"I  had  rather  he  believed  in  humanity,  general- 
ly, than  in  me,  whom  I  suspect  he  understands 
very  little." 

And  then  Grace  turned  the  subject,  and  shortly 
afterwards  left  the  room. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

THE  reply  to  Grace's  note,  which  Mrs.  Barham 
wired  back,  was  to  the  effect  that  the  Rev.  James 
Barham  and  she  would  be  delighted  to  receive 
Miss  Ballinger  at  Fellbridge  on  Thursday,  for  as 
long  as  she  could  find  it  convenient  to  remain 
with  them.  It  was  arranged,  therefore,  that 
Mordaunt  should  telegraph  to  his  sister  on  Mrs. 
Frampton's  arrival,  and  that  they  should  meet  at 
the  Brunswick  Hotel  in  Boston,  whichever  day  her 
aunt  liked  to  leave  New  York. 

Tuesday  and  Wednesday  passed  without  event 
or  conversation  worth  record.  Messrs.  Laffan  and 
Burton  had  departed  ;  other  visitors  came  and 
went,  some  for  the  afternoon,  some  to  dine  and 
sleep.  Mrs.  Courtly's  hospitality  was  great ;  but 
she  did  not  resemble  the  man  in  the  parable,  who 
thought  any  company  was  better  than  none.  She 
was  seldom  alone,  and  people  of  all  kinds  and  all 
tastes  met  in  her  house  ;  but  they  must  have 
something  to  recommend  them,  they  must  bring 
some  grist  to  the  mill  of  society.  One  night 


214  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

they  danced,  some  boys  from  Harvard  and  some 
girls  from  Boston  having  arrived  ;  and  to  see 
Mrs.  Courtly's  light,  graceful  figure  flying  round 
with  a  beardless  youth  was  really  a  pretty  sight, 
and  did  not  appear  incongruous. 

"  '  Age  cannot  wither  her,  nor  custom  stale 
Her  infinite  variety,' " 

murmured  Quintin  Ferrars,  as  he  watched  her. 

"  Yes,"  Grace  replied,  "  I  never  knew  so  many- 
sided  a  human  being.  Nothing  seems  to  come 
amiss  to  her — except  unkindness."  She  had 
grown  really  fond  of  her  hostess,  though  two 
characters  more  opposed  it  would  have  been  hard 
to  find. 

Since  Paul  Barham's  departure  Ferrars  had 
found  many  opportunities  of  being  alone  with 
Grace,  and,  even  after  Mrs.  Courtly's  revelations, 
she  did  not  avoid  these,  for,  as  she  said  truly,  she 
was  interested  in  the  man,  and  she  pitied  him 
doubly  since  she  knew  his  story.  She  did  not 
respect  or  admire  him  ;  but  he  was  clever,  and, 
her  very  outspoken  criticism  of  his  opinions  not 
being  taken  amiss,  it  was  just  possible  she  might 
exercise  some  beneficial  influence  over  him.  So 
he  had  himself  declared,  and  what  woman  is  there 
who  would  refuse  to  believe  such  a  declaration  ? 
After  Thursday  they  might  probably  never  meet 


A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  215 

again.  If  she  could  do  him  any  good,  if  any 
Avords  of  hers  could  alter  the  current  of  this  un- 
happy man's  feelings  towards  his  fellow-men,  she 
must  spare  no  pains,  during  the  short  time  that 
was  left  her,  to  effect  this. 

So  when,  on  that  Thursday  morning,  he  asked 
her  to  take  a  last  walk  with  him,  she  would  not 
refuse.  Overhead  was  a  hard,  blue  sky,  like  a 
stone,  with  yet  harder  white  clouds  driven  across 
it  by  a  bitter  northeast  wind.  The  shrubs  were 
bowed  earthwards  ;  the  brown  last  year's  leaves 
from  the  garden,  the  pulverized  stone-dust  from 
the  road,  were  swept  along  till  they  found  refuge 
in  some  corner  where  their  relentless  driver  could 
no  longer  flog  them. 

Grace,  clad  in  her  ulster  and  stalking-cap,  did 
not  fear  the  wind,  but,  as  it  rendered  talking 
difficult,  she  proposed  that  they  should  seek  the 
shelter  of  the  fir-wood.  There,  the  turbulence  of 
the  wind  was  only  heard  in  the  upper  branches;  a 
great  quiet  reigned  over  the  soft,  tawny  soil,  car- 
peted with  pine-needles,  upon  which  their  foot- 
steps fell. 

His  beginning  was  not  happy. 

"Why  are  you  going  away?  Why  do  you  go 
and  stay  with  those  Barhams,  a  country  minister 
and  his  wife,  Avith  whom  I  am  sure  you  can  have 
nothing  in  common  ?" 


216  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  I  like  Mrs.  Barbara  and  her  son  very  much — 
that  is  why  I  go." 

"  You  will  turn  that  conceited  young  fellow's 
head."  Then  he  added,  suddenly,  without  look- 
ing at  her,  "  You  are  the  only  woman  I  ever  met 
who  seems  to  have  no  idea  of  her  own  power." 

She  remained  silent  for  a  moment,  then  said, 
slowly,  "I  have  not  found  it  so.  My  life  has 
rather  shown  me  that  I  have  very  little." 

"  With  certain  people  you  can  do  anything  you 
choose,"  he  persisted,  "  but  that  is  not  my  point. 
Of  course,  many  women  have  that  power,  for 
good  or  ill.  My  point  is  that  you  don't  know 
when  you  have  it — you  don't  see  the  tremendous 
influence  you  may  exercise  upon  some  lives — upon 
mine,  for  instance.  You  may  change  all  my 
views  of  life,  turn  curses  into  blessings,  misery 
into  joy,  and  you  do  not  see  it !" 

She  was  startled ;  for  the  first  time  the  truth 
flashed  upon  her  mind.  It  was  impossible  to 
misunderstand  the  meaning  of  those,  words.  This 
man,  in  whom  she  had  taken  a  purely  impersonal 
intellectual  interest,  whom  she  had  never  led,  by 
word,  or  look,  or  action,  to  make  love  to  her ;  this 
man,  writh  a  wife  living,  from  whom  he  was  not 
yet  divorced,  dared  to  suggest  to  her  the  hopes 
he  entertained.  A  flush  of  indignation  suffused 
her  face.  She  felt  angry  with  him,  and  doubly 
angry  with  herself  for  her  stupidity. 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  217 

"You  are  quite  right.  I  did  not  see,  and  I  do 
not  choose  to  see  now,"  she  said  at  last.  "I  told 
Mrs.  Courtly  yesterday  that  you  understood  me 
very  little  ;  this  proves  it." 

"  Why  ?    Is  it  an  offence  to  say  this  ?" 

"It  should  be  so.  But  let  that  pass.  I  repeat 
that  you  understand  me  very  little,  since  you  seem 
to  have  mistaken  the  nature  of  my  friendly  feel- 
ing towards  you.  I  am  very  sorry  if — " 

"  No — no — don't  say  you  are  sorry.  ...  I  have 
been  precipitate,  I  know.  .  .  .  We  are  going  to 
part  now — and  I  felt  I  must  speak — that  I  must 
tell  you  how  different  life  has  appeared  to  me 
since  I  came  to  know  you  well.  I  have  never  felt 
for  any  woman  what  I  feel  for  you — " 

"You  should  not  say  that,"  she  interrupted, 
quickly.  "It  is  enough  that  I  know  your  story." 

"And  have  you  no  pity  for  me,  then?  Can 
you  not  see  how  the  great  deception  of  my  life 
turned  all  my  feelings  into  gall,  until  I  met  you? 
Can  you  not  understand  my  anxiety  now  for 
freedom — freedom,  which  I  shall  obtain  in  less 
than  six  months?  Will  you  not — " 

"  Stay  !  Mr.  Ferrars.  Situated  as  you  are,  it 
is  hai'dly  showing  much  respect  for  me  to  use 
this  language.  But  no  matter.  Understand  me, 

o        o  * 

once  for  all.    If  you  were  fifty  times  free,  it  would 
make  no  difference  in  my  feelings  towards  you. 


218  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

I  am  sorry  you  have  disturbed  the  pleasant  terms 
on  which  we  were." 

"Will  you  hold  out  no  hope?  No  possibility 
in  the  future  ?"  he  asked,  in  a  low,  husky  voice. 

She  shook  her  head.  "  None,  Mr.  Ferrars  ; 
none." 

"  Fool  !"  he  muttered  ;  and,  in  his  sudden  pas- 
sion, he  broke  the  stick  in  his  hand.  "Why  did 
I  speak  ?  Not  from  want  of  respect  for  you,  be- 
lieve me,  but  because  we  were  going  to  part,  and 
I  resolved  never  to  follow  you — never  to  perse- 
cute you  with  my  presence — unless  I  had  a  ray 
of  hope.  Just  one  ray  was  all  I  wanted.  God ! 
If  you  knew  what  it  was  to  be  utterly  alone 
in  the  world,  without  a  creature  you  care  for, 
or  who  cares  for  you  !"  He  flung  the  two  pieces 
of  stick  among  the  trees.  "That  is  all  my  life 
is  worth  now.  I  was  insane  enough  to  fancy  it 
might  begin  again.  That  dream  is  ended.  You 
will  forgive  me — won't  you  ?" 

She  made  no  reply.  Platitudes,  good  advice, 
were  worse  than  useless  at  such  a  moment.  Her 
transient  indignation  had  given  place  to  real  sor- 
row for  the  man,  but  to  express  this  would  only 
add  fuel  to  the  fire.  They  had  reached  a  point 
in  the  wood  where  two  paths  met.  At  the  farther 
end  of  one  she  saw  Mordaunt  and  Miss  Planter. 
Their  backs  were  towards  her  ;  they  were  in  deep 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  219 

conversation,  as  they  slowly  paced  along.  Grace 
naturally  chose  the  other  path,  and  it  was  that 
which  led  back  to  the  house.  When  they  were 
yet  some  yards  distant,  she  said, 

"  Let  all  this  be  forgotten  between  us  ;  we 
have  both  made  a  mistake.  But  I  hope,  by  and 
by,  if  we  should  meet  again,  that  you  will  let  me 
feel  the  same  friendly  regard  for  you  that  I  did 
before — before  you  allowed  yourself  to  speak  to 
me  of  this  foolish  fancy,  which  I  am  sure  will 
pass  away." 

"  Never,"  he  said,  in  a  hoarse  voice ;  "  it  will 
never  pass  away — but  I  promise — I  swear  to  you 
that  you  shall  not  be  troubled  with  this  madness 
of  mine  again.  Let  us  part  here — I  can't  face  all 
those  people — God  bless  you  !  You  are  the  best 
woman  I  have  ever  known,  and  for  your  sake  I 
shall  think  better  of  humanity  henceforward." 

He  wrung  her  hand,  and  his  face  was  deadly 
white  as  he  turned  to  enter  the  house  by  a  side 
door.  An  hour  later  he  was  gone.  No  one  but 
Mrs.  Courtly  saw  him,  and  that  discreet  friend 
announced  at  luncheon  that  Quintin  Ferrars  had 
been  called  suddenly  and  unexpectedly  away. 

In  the  meantime  the  other  two  had  been  walking 
in  the  fir-wood  for  the  best  part  of  an  hour.  If  we 
take  up  their  dialogue  during  the  last  ten  minutes 
we  shall  sufficiently  understand  what  preceded  it. 


220  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"You  say  you  like  no  one  else? — that  there 
is  no  other  fellow  you'd  sooner  marry  ?" 

"No,  there  is  none.  I  like  you  better  than 
Lord  Grantham,  though  I  really  liked  him  very 
much,  and  better  than  any  one  else  who  has  pro- 
posed to  me  in  London  or  New  York.  I  like  you 
awfully,  I  really  do.  But  to  marry —  Oh  I  I 
think  a  man  takes  a  deal  of  knowing  before  one 
can  make  up  one's  mind  to  marry  him." 

"  Haven't  we  had  exceptional  opportunities 
here  of  knowing  each  other?  Far  better,  I'm 
sure,  than  if  we  had  spent  a  season  in  London 
or  a  winter  in  New  York  together !  I  feel 
I  know  your  bright,  sweet  nature  thoroughly, 
and—" 

"  Oh  !  but  you  don't.  I  am  ever  so  full  of 
contradictions.  As  fast  as  ever  you  get  hold  of 
one  thing,  you'll  find  there's  something  else  quite 
contrary.  I  wish  a  thing,  and  I  don't  wish  it. 
Sometimes  I  fancy  I  should  like  to  marry  an  Eng- 
lishman, and  then  again  I  think  I  should  prefer 
living  in  my  own  country.  I  am  not  sure  about 
anything,  you  see,  yet,  and  therefore  I  mean  to 
go  around  for  quite  a  time,  and  feel  certain  be- 
fore I  settle  down." 

"  I  want  you  to  feel  certain.  But  if  in  six 
months  you  don't  change  your  mind — " 

"But  I  have  not  made  up  my  mind  !    If  I  had, 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  221 

I  should  not  feel  like  changing  it  in  six  months. 
I  am  changeable  now,  but  I  don't  mean  to  be  so 
by  and  by.  When  I  was  in  England,  of  course  I 
had  quite  a  number  of  proposals  ;  but,  except  for 
Lord  Grantham — I  think  he  really  did  like  me — I 
felt  pretty  sure  they  only  wanted  to  marry  me 
because  they  heard  papa  was  rich  and  I  was  his 
only  child,  and  that  wasn't  good  enough  for  me." 
"  I  should  think  not !  I'd  marry  you  gladly  if 
you  hadn't  a  penny — try  me.  Tell  your  father 
not  to  settle  a  dollar  on  you.  Men  in  business — 
Americans  especially,  I  believe — are  not  fond  of 
making  settlements.  I'm  not  rich,  but  I've  quite 
enough  for  us  to  live  on." 

"  Oh  !  that  is  not  it.  I  think  I  can  tell  when  a 
man  is  pretending.  And  I  am  sure  you  are  not 
pretending.  All  the  same,"  she  added,  with  an 
arch  smile,  "I  expect  your  heart  would  recover 
if  you  were  told  you  were  never  to  see  me  again, 
though  you  might  feel  pretty  badly  at  first." 

"I  don't  say  it  wouldn't,"  returned  Hordaunt, 
quick  enough  to  see  that  frankness  was  his  best 
policy.  "I'm  not  going  to  tell  a  lot  of  humbug 
about  my  heart  being  broken,  which  you  wouldn't 
believe.  Of  course,  I  have  flirted  a  good  deal.  A 
guardsman  of  eight- and -twenty  must  have  had 
some  affairs.  You  wouldn't  believe  me  if  I  said 
I  hadn't.  But  I  have  never  been  hard  hit  till 


222  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

now.  I  am  honestly  and  heartily  in  love  with 
you.  I  think  you  are  the  dearest  girl  in  the 
world,  and  I  shall  go  on  persevering  as  long  as 
I  see  you  don't  prefer  another  fellow.  If  you  do, 
I  shall  be  awfully  cut  up,  though  I  shall  try  and 
prevent  the  world's  seeing  it;  and,  I  suppose,  in 
the  course  of  time,  I  shall  marry  some  one  else, 
who  throws  her  cap  at  me.  She'll  have  to  make 
the  running.  I  sha'n't  be  a  bit  in  love." 

"Mamma  says  love  is  not  necessary  at  first — 
that  it  grows  and  strengthens  after  marriage — 
that  violent  fancies  are  seldom  lasting." 

"  You  run  no  danger  of  that  kind,  apparently," 
was  his  reproachful  reply.  "  You  speak  as  if  you 
had  no  heart." 

"  I  don't  know  if  I  have  one,  or  not.  If  I  was 
sure  I  had,  I  would  marry  the  man  right  away 
who  made  me  sure.  And  when  I  feel  sure  I  have 
not,  I  shall  marry — well,  I  suppose  any  one." 

"  For  ambition  ?" 

"Perhaps." 

There  was  a  long  silence.  Irrepressible,  "bump- 
tious," as  he  was  often  called,  Mordaunt  Ballinger 
on  this  occasion  was  reduced  to  silence.  His  eyes 
bent  upon  the  ground,  his  hands  thrust  deep  into 
the  pockets  of  his  ulster,  he  kicked  the  fir-cones 
with  his  yellow  leather  boots  as  they  paced  the 
wood,  while  the  girl,  erect,  keen-sighted,  with  a 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  223 

brilliant  color  on  her  fair  cheek,  glanced  at  him 
from  time  to  time,  and  then  away  through  the 
red- stemmed  pines  to  where  the  blue  smoke  curled 
up  from  the  chimneys  of  the  house. 

It  was  she  who  spoke  first. 

"  Where  are  you  going  after  Boston  ?" 

"  To  Colorado.  And  you  ?  Do  you  remain  at 
Pittsburgh  till  the  spring  ?" 

"I  think  not.  It  doesn't  agree  with  mamma. 
Perhaps  we  may  go  to  the  Pacific  Slope." 

"  Where  is  that  ?  Don't  laugh.  Do  you  mean 
California?" 

"  Why,  of  course.  Don't  the  hills  slope  down 
to  the  Pacific  ?" 

"  And  where  do  you  stop  there  ?" 

"  Possibly  at  Monterey ;  just  the  loveliest  place 
in  the  whole  world,  I  believe." 

"I  think  we  might  come  too.  I  didn't  mean 
to  go  so  far,  but  if — if  you — would  like — " 

"  Like  ?  Why,  of  course  I  should  !  It  would 
be  just  delightful !  We  would  have  a  real  good 
time,  wandering  by  that  lovely  shore,  watching 
the  seals,  and  driving  through  the  cypress  forest. 
I  shall  expect  to  meet  you  there." 

"  Then  I  shall  come." 

That  afternoon,  the  brother  and  sister  parted  at 
the  Boston  Railway  Station,  when  Mordaunt  saw 
his  sister  and  her  maid  into  a  train  which  would 


224  A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

deposit  them  in  half  an  hour  at  Fellbridge,  the 
small  town  of  which  the  Rev.  Joseph  Barham  was 
the  rector. 

But  little  had  passed  between  Grace  and  Mor- 
daunt.  Clare  Planter's  name  had  not  been  men- 
tioned. The  two  girls  had  parted  with  cordiality, 
when  Clare  had  said,  "I  hope  we  may  meet  in 
California.  Your  brother  says  we  shall." 

"  Indeed  ?"  Grace  replied.  "  I  did  not  know  he 
meant  to  go  as  far."  Then  she  added,  with  em- 
phasis, "  If  you  wish  it,  I  hope  we  may." 

She  sought  no  explanation  from  Mordaunt  ; 
she  respected  his  reticence,  understood  his  rather 
forced  hilarity  at  moments,  and  then  his  long 
lapses  into  silence.  It  was  better  so ;  she  did  not 
much  believe  in  confidences. 

Mr.  Barham  met  his  English  visitor  at  the  Fell- 
bridge  Station,  and  while  her  maid  waited  to  ac- 
company the  porter  who  was  to  wheel  her  box  on 
a  truck  down  the  street,  the  minister  conducted 
Grace  to  the  rectory. 

He  was  a  tall,  handsome  man  of  five-and-forty, 
with  hair  still  untouched  with  gray,  which  may 
have  helped  to  make  a  middle-aged  face,  in  which 
high  cheek-bones  and  a  prominent  chin  were  the 
chief  defects,  look  somewhat  hard.  The  silver 
that  years  scatters  on  our  head  is  a  wondrous 
softener,  as  silver,  in  life,  is  so  often  found  to  be. 


A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  225 

He  greeted  the  young  Englishwoman  with  a 
grave,  old-fashioned  courtesy  to  which  she  was 
unaccustomed. 

"  This  visit  is  a  pleasure  to  which  Mrs.  Barham 
has  been  looking  forward  for  several  weeks,  Miss 
Ballinger.  You  will  take  us  as  we  are,  simple 
folk,  living  in  a  simple  way.  You  can  have  ex- 
pected nothing  else  in  coming  to  a  minister's 
house,  so  I  make  no  apologies.  We  will  make 
you  as  comfortable  as  we  can,  and  show  you  what 
little  there  is  to  see  in  our  neighborhood." 

They  stopped  before  a  green-painted  wooden 
house,  in  no  way  dissimilar  from  its  fellows  in  the 
long,  wide  street.  It  stood  in  a  "  yard,"  perhaps 
a  quarter  of  an  acre  square,  with  half  a  dozen 
stripling  trees  and  a  bush  or  two  irregularly  dis- 
persed round  it.  Fence  or  paling  there  was  none, 
dividing  it  from  the  road  or  from  its  neighbors. 
It  had  a  "piazza,"  or  covered  balcony,  running 
along  the  front,  in  which  grew  two  shrubs  in  pots, 
but  there  was  no  border  or  bed  of  brown  frozen 
earth  telling  of  a  past -summer's  garden.  The 
exterior  was  certainly  discouraging. 

Mrs.  Barham,  who  had  been  watching  at  the 
window  for  them,  came  to  the  door  herself,  but 
not  before  it  had  been  opened  by  an  Irish  parlor- 
maid, with  an  aroma  of  Tipperary  still  hanging 
about  her.  Her  very  hair  seemed  to  have  a 
15 


226  A   VOYAGE    OP  DISCOVERT 

brogue.  But  behind  her  shone  the  sweet,  glad 
face  of  Saul's  mother,  and  tAvo  delicate  hands 
which  Grace  declared  she  would  have  recognized 
anywhere,  were  extended  to  greet  her. 

The  interior  of  the  house  presented  some  pleas- 
ant features,  indicative  of  work  and  home  life. 
On  this  account  it  seemed  to  Grace  more  cheer- 
ful than  many  of  the  sumptuous  dwellings  she  had 
visited  in  New  York.  The  "  parlor  "  had  books 
on  one  table,  Mrs.  Barbara's  work-basket  on  an- 
other, her  writing-materials  and  letters  on  a  third. 
There  was  no  open  fire-place,  and  the  heat  from 
the  stove  struck  Grace  as  oppressive,  coming  from 
the  sharp  air  of  the  February  afternoon.  But  she 
was  beginning  to  get  acclimatized  to  the  atmos- 
phere of  American  hotels,  railway-cars,  and  most 
private  houses,  Brackly  being  an  exception. 

She  threw  open  her  fur  jacket  as  she  sat  down. 

"How  nice  it  is  to  see  you  again — and  to  be 
under  your  roof  !"  she  exclaimed. 

"It  was  lovely  of  you  to  offer  yourself,  Miss 
Ballinger.  ...  I  am  afraid  you  find  the  room  too 
warm?  Won't  you  take  your  jacket  right  off?" 
Then  calling,  "  Molly  !  you  might  bring  the  tea, 
and — Molly  !  some  blueberry  jam,  if  you  please, 
and  the  Boston  crackers.  Joseph" — this  to  her 
husband,  who,  divested  of  his  great-coat  and  over- 
shoes, now  entered  the  parlor — an  honor  he  rarely 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  227 

paid  that  apartment  till  the  evening — "  I  hope 
you  feel  like  coming  to  sit  down  here,  and  having 
a  quiet  cup  of  tea  with  us?  He  does  work  so 
hard,  Miss  Ballinger.  I  am  so  glad  to  get  him 
away  from  his  study  and  his  parish-work  for  half 
an  hour." 

Mr.  Barham  did  not  reply  to  this.  He  sat  down 
stiffly,  crossed  his  legs,  and  said, 

"  We  expect  our  son  presently." 

"You  saw  him  on  Sunday?"  asked  Mrs.  Bar- 
ham,  anxiously.  "Did  you  think  him  looking 
ill  ?" 

"  Hardly  as  well  as  on  board  ship — but  that 
was  natural." 

"His  heart  is  in  his  work,  and  he  works  too 
hard,"  sighed  the  mother. 

"  He  does  his  duty.  He  can  do  no  less.  You 
observe  that  Mrs.  Barham  has  'work'  on  the 
brain,"  said  the  father,  with  just  so  much  upward 
inclination  of  the  curves  of  the  mouth  as  might, 
by  courtesy,  be  called  a  smile.  "  That  which  a 
man's  hand  finds  to  do  should  be  done  with  all 
his  might.  I  should  regret  if  a  son  of  mine 
thought  otherwise." 

"Ah,  Joseph,  but  with  Saul  you  know  very 
well  that  though  the  spirit  is  willing,  the  flesh 
is  weak." 

"  Saul  is  free  to  do  as  he  will.     I  do  not  coerce 


228  A   VOYAGE   OP   DISCOVERY 

him.  He  has  an  independence.  He  may  travel 
on  the  continent  of  Europe  till  he  is  strong — and 
you  may  go  with  him.  I  have  told  you  both  so, 
quite  a  number  of  times,  but  he  prefers  to  work 
at  home,  and  now  that  he  has  gotten  this  profess- 
orship I  guess  it  will  be  hard  to  induce  him  to 
give  it  up.  He  has  the  grit  of  a  true  Ameri- 
can, Miss  Ballinger.  He  won't  cave  in  till  he  is 
forced." 

"Then  I  hope  you  will  force  him — if  his  health 
suffers." 

"  Thank  you  for  saying  that,"  said  Mrs.  Bar- 
ham,  eagerly.  "My  husband  is  just  as  anxious 
as  I  am  about  our  son,  but  he  won't  speak.  He 
says  a  man  must  work  out  the  problem  of  life  for 
himself.  I  say  we  old  ones  should  help  the  young 
with  our  experience." 

Molly  here  entered,  staggering  under  a  tea-tray 
laden  with  the  teapot  and  crackers  and  jam.  She 
set  it  down,  sweeping  to  right  and  left  the  books 
on  the  table  ;  then,  with  a  mighty  sigh,  which 
seemed  as  though  it  would  burst  every  button  in 
her  bodice,  she  placed  her  arms  akimbo,  and  stood 
awaiting  further  instructions. 

"  You  might  bring  some  milk,  Molly,"  observed 
Mrs.  Barham,  in  mild  remonstrance.  Then,  lift- 
1  ing  the  lid  of  the  teapot,  "Are  you  sure  the  water 
boiled  ?" 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  229 

"Faith,  m'm,  I  thought  ye  wanted  your  tay 
in  a  hurry,  and  for  once  it  didn't  matther." 

A  distressed  look  came  over  her  mistress's  face. 
"It  always  must  boil,  Molly.  I  have  told  you  so 
before.  Could  not  the  cook  have  put  it  on  the 
fire  sooner  ?" 

"She  an'  me  was  helpin'  Pat  Malone  wid  the 
lady's  box,  which  was  that  big  we  had  the  divil's 
own  work  to  get  it  upstairs,  m'm." 

"  Do  not  speak  of  the  devil's  work  in  that  light 
way,"  said  her  master,  sternly. 

"  I  wasn't  manein'  to  sphake  of  him  in  a  light 
way,  sorr,  for  indade  it  was  mighty  heavy,  and — " 

"  Well,"  interrupted  her  mistress,  quickly, 
"you  might  run  and  make  some  fresh  tea — for 
this  is  hardly  warm;  and  mind  the  water  boils 
this  time."  Having  thus  got  rid  of  the  irrepress- 
ible Hibernian  housemaid,  Mrs.  Barham  turned 
to  her  guest,  with  a  piteous  smile.  "These  helps 
are  our  greatest  trial.  They  come  over  here  raw 
— very  raw — material.  If  one  gets  an  honest  girl 
like  this,  one  must  put  up  with  her  faults.  One 
dare  not  get  rid  of  her  for  fear  of  getting  some- 
thing worse." 

The  shrill  whistle  of  a  steam-engine  was  now 
heard,  not  far  distant. 

"  That  is  the  train  from  Cambridge,"  said  Saul's 
mother. 


CHAPTER   XV 

OF  the  quartette  that  sat  down  to  dinner  that 
evening — a  homely  dinner,  without  pretension — 
three  at  least  were  in  the  best  of  spirits,  and  ready 
to  laugh  over  Molly's  peculiar  methods  of  service. 
Mr.  Barham  had  little  sense  of  humor ;  in  that 
respect,  at  least,  he  was  not  American  ;  he  took 
life  very  gravely.  It  needed  all  his  son's  fire  to 
keep  things  alight  in  so  damp  an  atmosphere. 
But  Saul's  cheek  was  flushed  ;  he  was  voluble, 
excited  !  Grace  had  never  seen  him  so  brilliant, 
so  evidently  happy  and  at  his  ease.  For  here  he 
was  at  home,  with  no  carping  listeners  ;  he  could 
give  his  fun  and  fancy  play,  and  this  was  the 
occasion  which  he  had  thought  of  so  often,  and 
which  he  had  desired  so  keenly  to  bring  about, 
during  the  past  two  months.  It  was  not  in  his 
father's  power  to  depress  him  to-night.  Had  he 
not  that  gracious,  delightful  creature  opposite,  all 
to  himself  ?  No  Jem  Gunning  beside  her,  as  at 
the  Teutonic  board,  nor  cynic  Ferrars,  as  at  Brack  - 
ly.  His  empire,  for  a  few  brief  hours  at  least,  wns 
undivided. 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  231 

Molly,  having  heaved  a  joint  down  before  the 
master,  whispered  very  audibly  to  the  mistress, 

"  Will  ye  be  doin'  y'r  own  stretchin',  m'm,  for 
a  few  minutes,  whiles  I  fetch  the  praties  and 
squab  pie?" 

Grace  made  as  though  she  heard  not,  but  Saul 
laughed  outright,  as  the  girl  scuttled  from  the 
room. 

"You  have  no  idea,  Miss  Ballinger,  what  Molly 
is,  until  you  have  seen  her  in  the  presence  of  an 
Irish  patriot.  We  had  one  here  last  week.  I 
may  as  well  own  to  you  " — here  he  gave  a  droll 
glance  at  the  minister,  whose  stern  glance  was 
riveted  on  the  joint,  which  he  was  endeavoring 
to  penetrate  with  a  plated  knife*  —  "I  may  as 
well  own  to  you  that  my  father  has  Home  Rule 
proclivities.  So  he  offered  Mr. hospital- 
ity, when  he  and  his  colleagues  were  down  here, 
on  their  Propaganda  tour,  last  week.  Molly  out- 
did herself  on  that  occasion." 

"  I  can  believe  it,"  laughed  Grace,  "  from  what 
she  said  to  me." 

"  What  she  said  to  you  ?"  cried  Mrs.  Barham. 
"  Why,  when  ?" 

"Before  dinner.     I  found  her  haranguing  my 

*  Economy  of  labor  has  almost  abolished  the  use  of 
steel  knives  throughout  the  United  States. 


232  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

maid  upon  the  wrongs  of  'ould  Ireland,'  and  upon 
the  privilege  I  enjoyed  of  sleeping  in  the  bed 
which  had  been  occupied  by  '  the  biggest  Irish 
pathriot,  barrin'  Misther  Parnell,'  a  few  days  ago. 
When  I  entered,  she  continued  in  the  same  strain, 
and  assured  me, '  There  is  nothin'  changed  but  the 
sheets  since  the  blessed  man  lay  here — an'  sure 
y'r  dreams  will  be  all  the  sweeter,  miss,  for 
knowin'  it.'" 

Mrs.  Barham  and  Saul  laughed  heartily  ;  Mr. 
Barham  alone  was  silent.  When  he  spoke,  it  was 
to  say,  gravely, 

"One  cannot  expect  English  persons  to  feel  as 
we  do  on  this  subject.  Few  take  a  dispassionate 
view  of  questions  that  touch  their  own  inter- 
ests." 

"Very  few,"  said  his  son,  smiling.  "You 
were  an  abolitionist  because  you  were  a  North- 
erner, and  did  not  possess  slaves.  Rives  from 
New  Orleans,  who  is  ruined,  swears  the  colored 
people  were  far  happier,  more  prosperous,  better 
educated  and  cared  for,  in  a  state  of  slavery  than 
they  now  are.  It  all  depends,  as  you  say,  on  the 
point  of  view." 

"I  am  no  politician,"  said  Grace,  "but  I  was  in 
Ireland  five  years  ago,  and  again  last  year,  and  I 
was  struck  with  the  improved  aspect  of  the  peo- 
ple, of  the  land,  of  everything,  since  Mr.  Balf our's 


A   VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY  233 

reign.  That  is  the  only  '  point  of  view '  I  have, 
but  I  dare  say  I  am  quite  wrong.  Women  have 
capital  instincts — I  think  my  own  instincts  about 
people  are  almost  unerring ;  but  my  opinions  on 
other  subjects  are  generally  worth  nothing.  My 
aunt  always  says  so." 

"  That  is,  no  doubt,  when  they  differ  from  hers," 
observed  Saul,  with  a  smile. 

"My  aunt  is  a  very  clever  woman,  with  decided 
views  about  everything  in  heaven  above  and  in 
the  earth  beneath.  She  cannot  tolerate  compro- 
mise, or  shilly-shallying,  or  weakness  of  any  kind. 
She  often  upbraids  me  for  not  disliking  people 
more  cordially  than  I  do.  If  I  don't  like  them, 
they  are  indifferent  to  me.  So  few  seem  worth 
hating — at  least,  judged  by  the  aspect  they  pre- 
sent to  the  world.  Of  course,  one  may  entertain 
murderers,  as  well  as  angels,  unawares." 

"  You  hated  Lady  Clydesdale,  I  think — just  a 
little  ?  I  hear  she  is  in  Boston." 

"I  hope  I  sha'n't  meet  her.  Is  she  popular 
there  ?" 

"  She  is  a  clever  woman  in  her  way,  and  holds 
the  same  views  that  some  of  our  advanced  women 
do — only  samer.  Then  she  is  a  countess."  Here 
he  smiled.  "  Well,  now,  you  have  an  English 
countess  coming  with  the  most  democratic  and 
subversive  ideas  among  us  stanch  republicans. 


234  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

You  must  confess  there  is  something  fascinating 
about  it." 

"I  can't  say,  not  being  a  republican.  I  only 
know  she  is  not  fascinating.  Her  manners  are 
odious,  and  then  she  has  a  most  uncharitable 
tongue.  She  is  just  the  sort  of  woman  to  give 
the  worst  impression  of  an  English  lady  to  for- 
eigners." 

"  Do  you  call  us  foreigners  ?" 

She  laughed. 

"What  do  you  call  yourselves?  I  am  quite 
ready  to  accept  your  own  definition." 

"We  call  ourselves  your  sixth  cousins  —  once 
removed." 

"  Very  well ;  then  you  must  not  expect  the 
privileges  that  attach  to  aliens." 

"  What  are  they  ?    I  never  heard  of  them." 

"  Oh  !  it  is  a  small  matter,  but  one  which  some 
of  your  countrymen  cavil  at — the  question  of  pre- 
cedence. If  we  treat  them  as  of  our  own  fam- 
ily, and  follow  our  own  laws  of  etiquette,  I  have 
heard  them  say  it  was  discourteous." 

"  Then  they  were  fools — non  raygionam1  di  lor. 
Republicans  should  be  above  such  rubbish  as  that." 

" '  The  first  shall  be  last,  and  the  last  shall  be 
first!'"  said  his  father,  looking  up  from  the  havoc 
of  meat  before  him. 

The  conversation  was  carried  on  chiefly  between 


A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  '235 

Saul  and  Grace.  Mrs.  Barham  occasionally  put 
in  her  oar,  a  gentle  tentative  stroke,  never  out 
of  time,  never  impeding  progress  ;  but  the  main 
work  was  in  the  hands  of  the  two  strong  young 
pullers.  The  minister  said  but  little.  The  talk 
was  of  things  concerning  Avhich  he  knew  nothing, 
or  the  echo  of  which,  at  most,  had  reached  him 
from  a  distance,  without  awakening  much  interest. 
In  his  narrow  sphere,  where  there  was  no  circulat- 
ing library,  and  where  he  rarely  came  into  con- 
tact with  a  mind  which  had  left  the  beaten  high- 
roads, along  which  its  possessor  jogged  contented 
daily  to  his  business  or  his  farm,  the  air  was  ex- 
hausted, vitiated.  There  was  no  free  current  of 
thought  as  in  more  spacious  centres  of  activity, 
where  men  meet,  discuss,  and  learn  the  lessons 
that  are  taught  by  friction.  Not  that  the  village 
was  a  dream  of  idyllic  peace,  or  free  from  the  jeal- 
ousies that  ai*e  born  of  theological  controversy. 
How  could  it  be  otherwise  in  a  comparatively 
small  community,  which  boasted,  besides  the  Epis- 
copal church,  of  a  Unitarian,  a  Baptist,  a  first 
Methodist,  a  second  Methodist,  and  a  Congrega- 
tional chapel.  It  was  astonishing  that  they  all 
fared  as  well  together  as  they  did  ;  but,  in  the 
nature  of  things,  discussion  and  criticism  con- 
stantly arose,  and  it  was  Mr.  Barbara's  misfort- 
une that  these  conflicts  of  opinion  never  tended  to 


236  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

enlarge  his  own  strongly  fortified  views,  for  the 
minds  with  which  he  had  to  deal  were  all  distinctly 
inferior  to  his  own.  Endowed  with  considerable 
capacity,  combative,  obstinate,  and  unswerving  in 
rectitude  and  his  idea  of  duty,  he  might,  under 
different  circumstances,  have  become  a  modern 
St.  Paul.  At  least,  so  his  son  said.  But  then 
St.  Paul  had  been,  as  we  know,  buffeted  about  a 
good  deal,  in  the  course  of  which  process  he  had 
acquired  considerable  knowledge  of  the  world. 
It  is  true  that,  like  St.  Paul,  Mr.  Barham  was 
neither  diffident  nor  humble.  It  was  possible  to 
conceive  that  he  might,  at  the  close  of  his  life, 
say,  "I  have  fought  a  good  fight,  I  have  kept 
the  faith.  Henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me  a 
crown  of  righteousness."  But  he  never  could 
have  written,  "I  am  made  all  things  to  all  men," 
for  a  more  uncompromising  opponent  in  discus- 
sion, or  one  who  less  understood  the  wisdom  of 
yielding  in  small  things,  never  stepped  the  earth. 
Between  Saul  and  his  father  there  were  differ- 
ences of  opinion  on  other  subjects  than  that  of 
Home  Rule  ;  but  the  son,  while  he  had  inherited 
some  of  Mr.  Barham's  obstinacy  and  tenacity  of 
purpose,  had  a  more  plastic  mind,  and  possessed 
the  invaluable  capacity  of  being  able  to  hold  his 
tongue.  Thus  he  never  argued  with,  his  father, 
knowing  that  it  would  be  useless  to  assail  the  bul- 


A   VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY  237 

warks  behind  which  his  opinions  were  intrenched, 
and  doubly  reluctant,  now  that  he  had  left  home, 
to  enter  into  controversy  which  might  leave 
some  soreness  of  feeling  behind  it.  The  father 
respected  his  son — his  character,  his  attainments, 
the  estimation  in  which  he  knew  Saul  was  held. 
Therein  lay  the  young  man's  strength.  But  for 
this,  it  could  hardly  have  been  that  altercation 
should  not  have  arisen,  from  time  to  time,  between 
a  man  of  so  dominant  a  disposition  as  Mr.  Barham 
and  the  one  human  being  who  had  grown  up  under 
his  direct  influence,  and  upon  whom  it  might  be 
expected  he  would  have  imposed  his  views.  A 
little  gentle  banter,  as  on  this  occasion,  was  all 
that  the  young  professor  ever  permitted  himself 
towards  his  father;  and  this  the  minister  received 
much  as  a  majestic  Newfoundland  does  the  bark 
of  a  puppy.  It  was  beneath  his  notice. 

"  My  father,  you  see,  has  become  a  total  ab- 
stainer lately,"  he  said  to  Grace,  towards  the  end 
of  dinner,  "  and  it  is  no  use  my  mother's  quoting 
St.  Paul  to  him,  '  Drink  no  longer  water,  but  use 
a  little  wine  for  thy  stomach's  sake.'  The  pitch- 
ers of  ice -water  he  consumes  in  a  day  would 
float  a  lugger.  I  have  remarked  to  him  occasion- 
ally that  excesses  in  ice-water  are  as  pernicious 
—  or  perhaps  more  so  —  as  in  spirits  ;  but  my 
words  of  wisdom  fall  on  inattentive  ears." 


238  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

Grace  replied,  "All  I  know  is,  we  were  special- 
ly warned  against  falling  into  the  habit,  when  we 
came  to  America.  As  to  my  aunt,  she  thinks 
there  are  '  germs '  or  '  microbes,'  or  something,  in 
every  glass,  and  would  sooner  die  of  thirst,  I  be- 
lieve, than  drink  water  which  she  could  not  trace 
to  its  very  source." 

Even  the  minister  himself  smiled  at  this,  but 
he  did  not  attempt  to  argue  the  point ;  it  was  not 
worth  while.  His  attitude  throughout  the  evening 
was  the  same — that  of  a  listener,  standing  some- 
what aloof  from  the  subjects  discussed  ;  rarely  a 
participator  in  the  discussion.  The  ground  they 
traversed  was  never  personal.  Grace  felt  that 
her  curiosity  about  the  young  professor's  views 
and  aspirations  must  be  curbed  in  the  presence 
of  his  father,  before  whom  she  instinctively  knew 
he  would  not  speak  openly. 

The  next  morning  Saul  returned  to  his  work, 
and  Mrs.  Barham  proposed  taking  Grace  to  visit 
that  magnificent  female  university,  Wellesley 
College,  which  was  only  a  short  distance  by  rail. 
It  far  surpasses,  in  extent  and  scope,  as  Grace 
found,  any  similar  institution  in  England.  Seven 
hundred  girls  were  receiving  instruction  from 
the  very  best  professors,  in  classics,  modern  lan- 
guages, literature,  science,  and  art,  according  to 
their  proclivities  and  the  object  each  had  in  view. 


A   VOYAGE   OF    DISCOVERT  239 

The  main  building,  and  the  fine  park  in  which  it 
stands,  were  the  donation  of  a  man  who  lost  his 
only  child,  and  devoted  his  vast  fortune  to  the 
erection  and  endowment  of  this  college.  For 
three  hundred  dollars  yearly,  a  girl  has  every 
privilege  belonging  to  it  —  including  bed  and 
board ;  and  the  education  of  the  body  is  no  less 
well  cared  for  than  that  of  the  mind.  There  is  a 
gymnasium  and  a  big  lake,  where  the  girls  row  in 
summer-time  and  skate  in  winter.  They  looked 
blooming  and  merry,  this  bright  February  morn- 
ing, flying  over  the  ice,  their  young  voices,  pitched 
in  a  high  key,  rippling  along  the  sharpened  air  as 
they  pursued  each  other. 

Their  English  visitor  was  exceedingly  interest- 
ed. The  aspect  of  the  place  and  of  the  students 
alike  charmed  her ;  it  was  so  cheerful,  so  far  re- 
moved from  the  sternness  of  the  Academic  Grove. 
Here  each  girl  seemed  to  be  pursuing  with  enthu- 
siasm, and  with  a  joyousness  of  spirit  that  struck 
Grace  as  wholly  un-English,  the  studies  she  had 
selected  as  likely  to  be  most  serviceable  to  her  in 
after-life.  There  was  no  enforced  "  curriculum," 
no  obligatory  course  of  learning.  A  high  standard 
of  excellence  in  each  department  stimulated  the 
energies  and  the  ambition  of  the  students  ;  it 
seemed  in  no  instance  to  have  crushed  them.  The 
common  objection  made  to  women  taking  up  seri- 


240  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

ous  studies,  that  it  unfits  them  for  domestic  life, 
and  in  many  instances  frightens  away  the  would- 
be  suitor,  was  effectually  answered  when  Grace 
was  told  that  nearly  every  girl  who  had  taken  a 
high  degree,  and  had  left  the  college  meaning  to 
earn  her  livelihood  by  mental  labor,  had  married 
within  a  few  months,  and  had  settled  down, 
contented,  in  the  home  that  had  been  offered 
her. 

"  Are  all  these  girls  of  one  class  ?"  asked  Grace 
of  Mrs.  Barham. 

"  No  ;  some  are  the  daughters  of  rich  men,  who 
have  no  need  to  work  for  their  living.  The  great- 
est proportion,  of  course,  mean  to  become  govern- 
esses, for  whom  there  is  a  great  and  constantly 
increasing  demand.  Some,  again,  will  become 
doctors,  some  designers,  and  so  on.  Quite  a 
number  become  writers  for  the  periodicals  or  for 
the  daily  press." 

"  Oh  !  I  hope  they  don't  become  interviewers, 
like  that  dreadful  Miss  Clutch,  who  forced  herself 
on  me  in  New  York  ?" 

"Why,  no,  I  should  think  not,  for  their  refining 
education  must  render  such  a  course  most  repul- 
sive. But  then,  all  interviewers  are  not  like  Miss 
Clutch ;  you  must  not  think  it.  Some  of  them  are 
quite  ladies,  who  would  never  force  themselves  on 
any  one." 


A    VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY  241 

"Who  was  the  visitor  with  a  charming  face, 
whom  you  introduced  to  nie  as  Miss  Forster?" 

"She  is  quite  a  friend  of  mine,  though  we  do 
not  often  meet,  who  is  greatly  interested  in  the 
college,  and  visits  there  every  week.  It  is  an  ob- 
ject, you  see,  for  a  woman  who  is  alone  in  the 
world.  I  often  think  what  I  should  do  without 
my  husband  and  my  son." 

"  Alone  in  the  world !"  That  was  what  Quintin 
Ferrars  had  called  himself.  It  was  the  second 
time  within  a  few  days  that  the  phrase  had  forced 
itself  upon  her,  and  this  time  it  struck  her  like  a 
blow.  Would  not  she  be  "alone  in  the  world," 
when  Mordy  had  taken  unto  himself  a  wife,  and 
no  longer  needed  her?  She  would  never  marry 
for  expediency's  sake,  or  for  any  reason  but  one. 
Therefore,  it  seemed  tolerably  sure  now  that  she 
would  be  left "  alone  in  the  world."  How  strange, 
that  when  two  people  cared  for  each  other — and 
she  knew,  no  matter  what  she  might  say  to  Mordy, 
that  Ivor  Lawrence  did  care  for  her — how  strange 
that  a  mistaken  pride  should  be  suffered  to  divide 
them  !  But  then,  might  there  not  also  be  mis- 
taken pride  on  her  part,  which  had  held  her  back 
hitherto  from  writing  ? 

As  these  thoughts  sped  through  her  mind,  in 
the  train,  on  their  way  back,  Mrs.  Barham  ob- 
served the  far-away  look  on  her  companion's  face, 
16 


242  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

and  was  silent.  That  evening,  on  Saul's  return 
home  to  dinner,  this  self-communing  bore  unex- 
pected fruit  in  the  course  of  her  conversation 
with  the  young  man.  They  were  sitting  alone  in 
the  twilight,  both  Saul's  parents  being  out  of  the 
room.  He  coughed  a  good  deal,  and  looked  ill, 
the  excitement  of  the  previous  evening  having 
passed ;  and,  without  showing  the  concern  she 
felt,  she  questioned  him  as  to  his  health  and  his 
work. 

"  I  am  afraid  you  take  too  much  out  of  your- 
self." 

"I  can't  do  less,"  he  replied.  "If  I  was  at 
home  here,  doing  nothing,  I  should  be  much  worse. 
I  must  have  work ;  and  my  best  relaxation  is  to 
discuss  things  with  my  friends,  men  Avhose  ways 
of  thought  are  congenial  with  mine.  My  father's, 
you  see,  are  not.  He  is  a  splendid  man.  I  admire 
and  respect  him  immensely.  But  we  both  avoid 
discussion,  knowing  that  neither  will  ever  con- 
vince the  other.  So  it  would  never  do  for  me  to 
live  at  home." 

"I  can  understand  that.  Family  controversy 
is  always  disagreeable.  Have  you,  at  Harvard, 
any  friend  with  whom  you  are  really  intimate  ? 
— any  one  towards  whom  you  feel  as  a  brother  ?" 

"  Yes,  one ;  a  man  to  whom  I  am  not  afraid  of 
speaking  openly  on  nearly  every  subject,  feeling 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  243 

sure  be  will  understand,  even  if  he  does  not  agree 
with  me." 

There  was  a  pause.  Grace,  who  rarely  hesitated, 
hesitated  now  before  she  said, 

"If  that  friend  had  done  something  which  you 
could  not  understand,  something  which  seemed 
incompatible  with  his  character,  and  that  he  re- 
mained silent,  that  he  explained  nothing,  what 
would  you  do?  Would  you  write  to  him?  Or 
would  you,  rather,  say, '  I  will  not  allow  my  trust 
to  be  shaken  because  I  do  not  understand  his  con- 
duct. He  has  his  own  reasons  for  remaining  si- 
lent. It  is  not  for  me  to  force  an  explanation 
from  him.'  " 

He  looked  at  her  fixedly  for  a  moment,  then 
answered,  in  his  decided  way, 

"  There  is  a  higher  trust  than  that  implied  by 
silence — the  confidence  that  my  friend  will  not 
misunderstand  me.  I  should  certainly  speak.  If 
he  says, '  I  can  tell  you  nothing,'  that  is  enough. 
My  trust  would  remain  unshaken;  but  I  am  bound, 
by  that  very  trust,  to  speak  openly  to  him,  not  to 
let  the  shadow  of  misapprehension  exist  between 
us." 

"  Those  are  brave  words.  I  believe  you  are 
right.  False  pride  often  prevents  such  directness 
in  real  life,  and,"  she  added,  with  a  smile,  "  still 
more  often  in  novels.  But,  of  course,  there  may 


244  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

be  a  complication  of  causes,  which  renders  it 
more  difficult  to  speak  in — in  some  cases  than  in 
others." 

"  Of  course  ;  but  I  fancy  the  difficulty  depends 
more  upon  the  character  of  the  speaker  than  the 
circumstances.  You,  for  instance,  might  speak  to 
any  one  whom  you  had  really  made  jour  friend 
without  fear  of  misconception,  no  matter  under 
what  circumstances." 

She  looked  away.  "  I  am  glad  you  think  that. 
I  shall  remember  your  words." 

Here  Molly  burst  into  the  room,  with  a  tele- 
gram for  Grace  in  one  hand,  and  a  paraffine  lamp, 
which  in  her  haste  she  nearly  upset,  in  the  other. 

"The  bhoy's  a-waitin'  for  the  answer,  bekase 
it's  paid  for." 

The  telegram  ran  thus, 

"Aunt  Susan  arrived.  Gone  to  the  Hurlstones.  Can 
meet  you  to-morrow  in  Boston,  if  you  do  not  wish  to  stay 
till  Monday  where  you  are." 

She  wrote  in  pencil  on  the  blank  form, 

"Will  meet  you  and  Aunt  Susan  on  Monday.  Very 
happy  here." 

Then  she  handed  both  to  the  young  professor. 
"  I  am  taking  it  for  granted  that  your  father 
and  mother  do  not  want  to  get  rid  of  me." 
"  Have  we  not  got  beyond  conventional  phrases? 


A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  245 

I  shall  not  answer  that,  except  to  remind  you  that 
Sunday  is  the  only  day  I  can  pass  here.  To-mor- 
row my  mother  has  promised  to  bring  you  over 
to  lunch  at  Cambridge,  where  I  will  ask  a  few  of 
our  prominent  men  to  meet  you,  and  afterwards 
show  you  Harvard  College." 

That  programme  for  the  following  day  was 
carried  out  very  satisfactorily  to  all  concerned. 
The  distance  by  rail  was  short;  the  day,  though 
intensely  cold,  was  fine  ;  the  atmosphere,  through 
which  the  brown  skeletons  of  the  trees  stood  up 
against  the  pale  blue  background,  was  clear.  Per- 
spectives of  possible  beauty  when  the  gracious 
spring  should  clothe  these  skeletons  with  tender 
green,  and  carpet,  with  blade  and  blossom,  the 
iron-bound  earth,  arose  before  Grace's  eyes.  Hith- 
erto she  had  been  disappointed.  She  had  looked 
for  bigger  trees,  higher  hills,  less  tameness  and 
monotony  than  she  found  in  the  New  England 
landscape.  I  know  not  on  what  grounds  she  had 
built  her  expectations,  but  the  reality  certainly 
fell  short  of  them.  This  short  railway  journey, 
however,  carried  her  past  spots  of  undeniable 
picturesqueness,  where  little  streams,  like  silvery 
trout,  twirled  and  darted  through  the  red  log- 
wood and  yellow  reeds  and  sedges.  She  could 
conceive  how  pretty  much  of  it  must  be  in  sum- 
mer. 


246  A   VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY 

At  the  station,  of  what  the  guide-book  calls  "the 
great  academic  city,"  Saul  met  them.  Their  walk 
through  the  main  street  and  villa-fringed  high- 
ways to  the  small  house  where  the  young  professor 
and  a  friend  lived  together  gave  Grace  rather  the 
impression  of  a  suburb,  an  accretion  of  well-to-do 
residences  that  have  grown  and  spread  out  from 
some  great  centre.  And,  though  "  well-to-do," 
those  residences,  as  a  rule,  did  not  convey  to  Eng- 
lish eyes  much  idea  of  comfort.  The  impossi- 
bility of  any  privacy  in  dwellings  standing  in 
"yards,"  unseparated  from  each  other,  and  unde- 
fended even  by  the  conventional  grove  of  laurel, 
was  a  shock  to  her  insular,  and  no  doubt  un-Chris- 
tian,  prejudices.  When  Grace  passed  the  homes 
of  the  great  men  whose  names  were  household 
words  to  her,  she  marvelled,  until  she  remem- 
bered that  genius  is  never  dependent  on  its  sur- 
roundings. 

The  luncheon  pai'ty  was  most  agreeable — the 
five  men  asked  to  meet  the  ladies  being  not  only 
very  able  in  different  ways,  but  knowing  how  to 
make  their  abilities  serviceable  to  social  use,  as 
is  not  always  the  case  even  with  the  cleverest  Eng- 
lishmen. After  luncheon  most  of  them  had  to 
hurry  off  ;  one,  however,  agreed  to  accompany  the 
ladies  and  Saul  round  the  university.  Mrs.  Bar- 
ham  naturally  fell  to  him ;  Saul  and  Grace  walked 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  247 

on  in  front,  through  the  grand  Memorial  Hall,  the 
University  Library,  the  fine  architectural  gymna- 
sium. Grace  was  properly  enthusiastic. 

"  Harvard  surpasses  my  expectations,"  she  said. 
"I  can  understand  your  being  very  happy  here." 

"I  do  not  think  I  said  I  was  very  happy,"  he 
replied.  "But  if  I  am  not,  the  fault,  no  doubt,  is 
in  myself." 

She  looked  up  at  him,  and  saw,  with  concern, 
how  wan  and  tired  he  looked.  He  had  been 
flushed  and  in  brilliant  spirits  all  the  morning. 
He  coughed  at  times,  but  then  she  had  never 
known  him  without  a  cough.  Now  her  old  fear 
returned.  But  of  what  use  was  it  to  speak  ?  It 
was  clear  that  he  would  not  relax  in  his  work, 
still  less  give  it  up  and  seek  a  milder  climate. 
Like  the  Pompeiian  sentinel,  he  would  die  at  his 
post,  but  never  flee.  Neither  spoke  for  some  min- 
utes. Their  thoughts  were  upon  very  different 
lines ;  she  had  forgotten  his  last  words,  and  failed 
to  see  the  connection  of  ideas  when  he  said, 

"  I  am  not  a  philosopher,  you  see.  I  cannot 
accept  the  inevitable.  When  a  thing  is  beyond 
a  man's  reach  he  ought  not  even  to  think  about 
it." 

"But  isn't  it  because  you  do  not  think  enough 
of  the  plain,  simple  thing — I  would  say  the  duty 
— that  is  within  your  reach,  that  you  are  troubled 


248  A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY 

about  the  unattainable  ?  Those  old  Romans  were 
so  wise  when  they  said  that  '  a  healthy  mind '  de- 
pended on  '  a  healthy  body.'  You  ought  to  leave 
off  work — I  am  sure  you  ought — and  go  '  right 
away,'  as  you  say  here,  and  get  quite  strong  be- 
fore you  return  to  this  trying  climate.  You  should 
do  this  for  your  mother's  sake.  If  you  resist  her 
appeal,  with  her  sweet,  suffering  face,  of  course 
no  words  of  mine  can  be  of  any  avail." 

For  a  minute  it  seemed  as  though  he  had  not 
heard  her.  His  brow  was  knit,  his  lips  tight 
clenched  ;  he  walked  on  without  turning  his  head. 
Then,  catching  his  breath  as  he  spoke,  he  said,  in 
a  low  voice, 

"  On  the  contrary.  If  you  told  me  to  go — to 
follow  you — anywhere — I  would  do  it.  That  is 
the  only  thing  that  would  make  me  throw  up  my 
professorship." 

She  was  painfully  startled  ;  she  had  not  in  the 
least  anticipated  this.  She  knew — what  woman 
does  not  ? — that  she  was  admired  ;  but  their  in- 
tercourse had  been  of  such  a  purely  friendly 
nature,  it  had  never  occurred  to  her  that  this 
young  man,  in  whom  she  had  not  hesitated  to 
show  her  deep  interest,  secretly  nourished  a  far 
stronger  feeling.  They  were  just  the  same  age ; 
yet  to  her,  in  spite  of  his  decision  and  force  of 
character,  he  had  seemed  much  younger.  Poor 


A   VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  249 

fellow  !  Oh,  the  pity  of  it !  That,  ill  as  she 
knew  him  to  be,  she  must  speak  words  which 
must  wound  him,  words  which  sounded  cruel 
even  in  her  own  ears. 

"  That  is  a  responsibility  I  could  never  under- 
take. I  can  only  advise  you  as  a  friend,  a  friend 
of  your  mother's  as  of  yours.  I  can  only  tell 
you  what  it  seems  to  me  it  is  right  you  should 
do.  Beyond  that,  I  cannot  direct  your  future." 

"Of  course.  I  never  thought  you  would,"  he 
said,  in  a  low  voice,  as  they  entered  the  Memorial 
Hall. 

His  mother  touched  her  on  the  shoulder  at  the 
same  moment. 

"Those  are  Lafarge's  famous  windows,"  she 
said.  "  How  do  you  like  them  ?" 


CHAPTER   XVI 

SAUL  did  not  return  to  Fellbridge  that  evening 
with  his  mother  and  Grace.  Mrs.  Barham,  in- 
deed, urged  him  not  to  do  so,  seeing  how  ill  he 
looked,  and  he  yielded  without  a  word.  His 
mother  enjoined  him  to  rest,  and  to  go  to  bed 
early,  "for  you  look  just  fairly  worn  out,  Saul." 

And  when  they  were  in  the  train,  she  turned  to 
Grace,  with  a  deep  sigh,  and  said, 

"He  has  gotten  back  that  ashy  color  which  he 
had  before  he  went  abroad.  And  his  cough  ;  did 
you  hear  how  he  coughed  ?  Oh,  Miss  Ballinger, 
I  am  so  down-hearted  about  my  only  boy,  the 
only  one  left  !" 

She  turned  her  face  away,  but  it  was  not  to 
hide  any  tears  in  her  stone-blue  eyes.  Her  anx- 
iety, her  grief  were  far  too  deep  for  wailing. 

Grace  pressed  silently  the  small  gloved  hand 
that  lay  on  the  poor  mother's  lap.  She  felt  as 
though  she  were,  in  a  measure,  responsible  for 
Saul's  condition.  With  a  word  she  could  send 
him  away  to  some  sunny  clime,  where  he  might 


A   VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY  251 

revive,  as  it  seemed  almost  certain  to  her  he 
would  not  do  here.  But  she  could  never  speak 
that  word. 

Grace  had  rarely  found  it  so  hard  to  be  cheer- 
ful as  this  evening.  "When  she  looked  at  the 
handsome  but  rigid  face  of  her  reverend  host, 
and  thought  of  "  Little  Mother "  confronted  by 
some  great  sorrow,  with  no  solace  but  in  the 
stern  Calvinism  of  her  husband,  the  girl  shivered. 
It  was  probably  a  difficult  evening  to  all  three. 
The  minister,  who  had  no  special  anxiety  about 
his  son,  exerted  himself  to  supply  the  young 
man's  place,  but  he  felt  himself  to  be  an  ineffi- 
cient substitute,  in  conversation  with  his  English 
guest.  As  to  "  Little  Mother,"  she  did  her  duty 
bravely  ;  but  it  made  Grace's  heart  ache  to  look 
into  those  deep,  sad  eyes — sad,  even  when  the 
lips  smiled  and  she  spoke  lightly  of  indifferent 
matters. 

When  she  went  to  her  room  that  night,  Grace 
sat  down  and  wrote  a  letter.  Its  composition  did 
not  take  her  long  ;  indeed,  it  may  be  said  that 
every  word  of  it  had  been  burned  into  her  brain 
many  months  ago.  She  had  desired  exceedingly, 
at  that  time,  to  write  to  Ivor  Lawrence,  and  she 
had  refrained.  Again  in  New  York,  after  Mor- 
daunt  had  broached  the  subject  once  more,  the 
impulse  to  tell  the  friend,  who  was  laboring  un- 


252  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

der  a  foul  aspersion,  how  deeply  she  felt  for  him 
had  been  strong  ;  but  still,  moved  by  her  broth- 
er's indignant  remonstrance,  she  had  forborne. 
And  now,  it  was  strange,  but  Saul's  few  words, 
and  the  reproach  of  her  pusillanimity  they  carried 
with  them,  had  upset  all  this.  The  forcible  way 
in  which  he  had  confirmed  her  instinct — and,  like 
most  women,  she  believed  in  her  instincts — de- 
cided her. 

This  is  what  she  wrote  : 

"  FELLBRIDGE,  MASS.,  U.  S., 

"  18th  February,  1891. 

"MY  DEAR  MR.  LAWRENCE, — I  know  you  too  well  to 
doubt  that  you  have  some  good  and  sufficient  motive  in 
your  own  eyes  for  having  entirely  given  up  all  communi- 
cation with  your  friends,  since  this  dark  cloud  has  hung 
over  you.  That  you  should  wilfully  deprive  yourself  of 
the  personal  sympathy  of  those  who  would  never  for  an 
instant  believe  j'ou  capable  of  a  dishonorable  action — no 
matter  the  amount  of  testimony  brought  against  you — 
seems  to  me  strange.  I  have  waited,  but  waited  in  vain, 
all  these  months,  for  a  line  that  should  tell  me  that  you 
trusted  in  my  friendship  ;  that  you  felt  certain  I  could 
never  doubt  your  rectitude  and  truth.  I  have  been  disap- 
pointed. But,  since  it  has  seemed  good  to  you  to  be  silent, 
I  do  not  see  that  a  corresponding  silence  is  imposed  upon 
me  ;  and,  after  some  misgiving,  at  the  risk  of  appearing 
obtrusive,  I  write  to  assure  you  that  you  have  friends 
who  watch  with  intense  interest,  but  without  anxiety, 
your  present  fight  with  calumny  and  suspicion.  They 


A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  253 

never  doubt  but  that  you  will  come  triumphantly  through 
this  ordeal.  My  taking  up  my  pen  to  say  this  may  seem 
to  you  a  very  uncalled-for  step  on  my  part,  but,  as  I  think 
you  know  me  well,  I  am  not  in  the  least  afraid  of  your 
misinterpreting  it.  I  cannot  longer  allow  a  friend,  whom 
I  value,  to  suffer  as  I  know  you  must  be  suffering,  with- 
out a  word  to  tell  him  of  my  unwavering  confidence  and 
cordial  sympathy.  Sincerely  yours, 

"  GRACE  BALLINGER. 

"P.S. — "We  are  travelling  in  the  United  States,  and 
shall  not  return  to  England  before  May." 

She  felt  more  tranquil  after  writing  this  than 
she  had  done  for  a  long  time.  The  endeavor  to 
put  the  subject  away  from  her  had  .failed.  In 
the  watches  of  the  night  it  had  come  back,  and 
upbraided  her,  no  matter  by  what  specious  argu- 
ments she  had  striven  to  persuade  herself  that  it 
was  unfitting  she  should  write.  She  knew  her 
heart  and  intellect  did  not  subscribe  to  conven- 
tional laws,  though  in  traffic  with  the  world  her 
habitual  conduct  did  so.  But  this  was  an  excep- 
tional case.  Her  aunt,  her  brother,  could  never 
understand  it,  because  they  did  not  understand 
Ivor  Lawrence's  peculiar  character.  It  was  that 
character  which,  after  his  strange  behavior,  justi- 
fied this  action  in  her  own  eyes.  Upon  no  other 
man  could  she  have  forced  her  sympathy.  He 
had  loved  her — she  felt  sure  of  that,  she  could 
not  be  mistaken — and  yet  he  had  never  spoken  of 


254  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

his  love.  To  most  women  this  would  have  been 
a  cause  of  misgiving,  if  not  of  offence  and  bitter- 
ness. It  was  not  so  to  this  strange  girl.  She 
felt  that  she  could  comprehend  it  all — the  pride 
that  kept  him  silent  as  long  as  he  was  a  poor  and 
briefless  barrister,  and  that  shrank  still  further 
from  avowal  when  his  name  was  branded  with 
infamy.  But  the  world  had  not  comprehended  ; 
her  own  kith  and  kin  had  been  indignant.  To 
one  and  all  the  man's  behavior  had  seemed  dis- 
graceful. He  had  paid  Grace  such  marked  at- 
tention for  months  as  had  kept  other  and  better 
men  aloof  ;  then,  on  inheriting  this  vast  fortune, 
had  completely  dropped  her !  And  half  this 
fortune  must  be  his,  it  was  said,  even  if  the  ver- 
dict in  the  approaching  trial  should  be  given 
against  him,  as  an  earlier  will  had  been  found, 
dividing  Mr.  Tracy's  property  equally  between 
his  two  nephews.  It  was  thus,  as  Grace  knew, 
that  her  friends  argued ;  and  every  effort  to 
make  them  see  the  circumstances  in  a  different 
light  would  be  of  no  avail. 

The  next  day,  Sunday,  Saul  appeared  soon 
after  morning  service.  He  looked  as  if  he  had 
not  slept  all  night,  and  he  coughed  a  great  deal ; 
but,  by  a  resolute  effort  of  will,  he  talked  very 
much  as  usual.  Grace  should  not  be  distressed 
during  her  last  day,  nor  should  "  Little  Mother," 


A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  255 

by  his  depression  of  spirits.  After  all,  how  was 
he  worse  off  now  than  when  Grace  arrived  here? 
He  knew  then — he  had  known  all  along — how 
utterly  hopeless  was  his  attachment.  He  had 
been  surprised,  like  a  fool,  into  an  avowal  of  his 
feelings,  and  he  bitterly  regretted  it.  A  thin 
screen  of  ice  had  formed  itself,  since  then,  be- 
tween him  and  her.  Nothing,  now,  could  melt 
that ;  but,  at  least,  the  last  hours  of  their  inter- 
course under  his  father's  roof  should  be  as  little 
constrained  as  possible,  under  the  circumstances. 

At  parting,  as  he  held  her  hand  for  an  instant, 
he  said,  quite  simply, 

"  If  we  never  meet  again,  Miss  Ballinger,  pray 
remember  that  you  brought  happiness  into  at 
least  one  obscure  New  England  home.  We  shall 
think  of  your  visit  here  with  gratitude,  and  often 
talk  of  it,  my  mother  and  I.  Good-by." 

Firm,  self-contained  to  the  end,  his  voice  be- 
trayed no  emotion,  as  he  raised  her  hand  respect- 
fully to  his  lips.  She  said  nothing.  What  could 
she  say  ?  Then  he  turned  ;  the  white  face,  the 
shrunk,  shadowy  figure,  vanished  in  the  gloam- 
ing ;  and  that  was  the  last  she  saw  of  Saul  Bar- 
ham. 

In  a  ground-floor  "parlor"  at  the  Brunswick, 
late  the  following  afternoon — a  parlor  that  was 


256  A   VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY 

heavily  decorated  and  brilliant  with  electric 
light,  Grace  fell  into  Mrs.  Frarapton's  expansive 
embrace.  It  was  a  bitterly  cold  day,  and  the 
cheek  which  her  niece  pressed  seemed  frozen. 
It  belonged  to  a  short, stout  woman,  still  almost  as 
vigorous  as  at  twenty,  with  iron-gray  hair,  that 
rose  in  crisp  waves,  and  broke  over  the  broad, 
prominent  forehead,  indicating  stubborn  natural 
force.  Swift  black  eyes,  a  healthy  color,  fine  white 
teeth,  told  the  same  tale  of  strong  vitality.  The 
expanded  nostrils,  and  full  mobile  mouth,  showed 
perhaps  other,  but  not  contradictory,  character- 
istics. 

Impossible  to  doubt  that  this  was  a  clever, 
dominant,  possibly  at  times  a  violent  woman  ; 
attractive  to  some,  to  others  a  terror  and  a  bete 
noir.  Voluble,  beyond  the  limits  of  discretion, 
yet  rarely  foolish ;  impulsive  as  a  child ;  loving 
and  hating  with  equal  intensity ;  yet  prudent, 
worldly-wise,  humorous,  and  quick- sighted,  it 
was  not  difficult  to  form  an  idea,  more  or  less 
just,  of  Mrs.  Frampton  in  five  minutes'  conver- 
sation. But  then,  as  her  nephew  said,  "Aunt 
Susan  always  lets  herself  go."  It  was  that  qual- 
ity of  "letting  herself  go"  which  made  her  so 
entertaining  a  companion. 

She  spoke  rapidly,  in  a  high  but  not  unmusical 
voice,  holding  her  niece  out  at  arm's-length  after 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  257 

embracing  her,  while  she  scanned  the  girl's  coun- 
tenance. 

"  You  look  well,  my  child !  This  horrible  cli- 
mate agrees  with  you,  then  ?  I  have  been  shriv- 
elling up  visibly  every  hour  since  I  landed.  And 
then  the  awful  heat  of  these  furnaces  !  I  thought 
I  should  be  roasted  alive  in  the  railway-carriage 
coming  here  !  How  can  you  stand  it?" 

"  I  grin  and"  bear  it  as  well  as  I  can,  Aunt  Su. 
And  as  to  the  climate,  I  like  this  dry  cold  a  great 
deal  better  than  the  damp  and  fog  of  London." 

She  shrugged  her  shoulders.  "  '  Quel  drole  de 
gout !'  as  the  irreverent  Frenchman  said  when 
some  one  spoke  of  the  Jews  as  '  God's  chosen 
people.'  Mordy  has  been  talking  the  same  non- 
sense. As  if  the  London  climate  was  not  good 
enough  for  any  living  creature,  except,  perhaps, 
an  asthmatic  poodle!  My  nerves  are  all  rasped 
here.  I  hate  it." 

"  Well,  aunty,  we  won't  rasp  you  more  by  say- 
ing anything  about  the  climate,  but  we  mean  to 
make  you  like  the  country  very  much." 

"  Never  !"  she  cried,  in  a  melodramatic  tone. 
"  Except  the  Hurlstones'  house,  everything  I 
have  seen  is  hideous.  Those  dreadful  streets  ! 
You  didn't  say  half  enough  about  those  dreadful 
New  York  streets.  I  felt  as  if  every  bone  in  my 
body  was  dislocated,  when  I  drove  through  them  ! 
17 


258  A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

And  then  their  way  of  spitting  about  one !  There 
was.  one  man  who  actually  aimed  across  me  at  a 
spittoon  !  Pray,  have  you  got  accustomed  to 
that  ?" 

"  I  never  see  it,"  returned  Grace,  with  a  smile. 
"  You  know  I  am  one  of  those  stupid  but  happy 
people  who  don't  see  ugly  things,  unless  they  are 
thrust  under  their  very  nose." 

"  Well,  my  dear,  this  was  thrust  under  my  very 
nose.  No,  I  hate  all  I  have  seen  of  the  people, 
except  the  Hurlstones.  I  except  them,  for  they 
are  thoroughly  well-bred,  nice  people,  and  their 
house  is  charming." 

"There  are  plenty  of  houses  as  good — indeed 
better,  to  my  taste — and  plenty  of  people  as  nice." 

"  You  didn't  do  them  justice,  Gracey,  in  your 
letters  to  me.  They  are  a  charming  family.  I 
was  most  agreeably  surprised  in  Beatrice  Hurl- 
stone.  She  would  hold  her  own  in  any  London 
drawing-room." 

"  I  didn't  say  she  would  not,  aunty.  I  am  sure 
I  said  nothing  against  them.  I  was  very  grate- 
ful for  all  their  kindness  and  hospitality." 

"  Oh !  grateful.  We  know  what  that  means. 
You  didn't  like  them,  and  you  put  Mordy  off 
from  liking  the  girl." 

"  My  dear  aunt !  What  nonsense  !  As  if  any- 
thing I  could  say  would  influence  him  in  the  slight- 


A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  259 

est  degree  in  that  way !  He  flirted  with  her  at  first, 
and  then  he  found  some  one  he  admired  more." 

"  That  is  just  it.  If  he  will  marry  an  American, 
I'd  rather  it  was  Beatrice  Hurlstone  than  any  one. 
I  don't  at  all  like  the  idea  of  Miss  Planter,  whom 
he  raves  to  me  about.  He  sha'n't  marry  her,  if  I 
can  help  it.  In  the  first  place,  I  am  told  she  is  a 
desperate  flirt.  Then  her  father  is  one  of  those 
speculators  who  is  rich  to-day  and  may  be  poor 
to-morrow,  and  will  only  give  his  daughter  an 
income — will  settle  nothing  upon  her.  Whereas 
Mr.  Hurlstone's  large  fortune  will  be  divided 
equally  between  his  son  and  his  daughter — he 
told  me  so  himself." 

"  That  was  considerate  of  him,"  said  Grace, 
with  one  of  her  rare  touches  of  sarcasm. 

And  the  hero  of  their  talk  entering  the  room 
at  that  moment,  there  was  an  abrupt  change  in 
the  conversation. 

"  I  find  her  looking  very  well,  Mordy  !"  cried 
his  aunt.  "  Is  it  the  New  England  parsonage 
that  has  given  her  those  roses?  She  looked  like 
a  squeezed  lemon  four  months  ago." 

"  Oh !  twenty-four  hours  at  sea  picked  her  up. 
She  is  an  awfully  good  sailor  and  never  missed 
a  meal ;  and  amused  herself,  I  can  tell  you, '  pret- 
ty considerable,'  as  we  say  over  here  —  having 
three  men,  all  very  much  gone  on  her." 


260  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVEEY 

Mrs.  Frampton  laughed  heartily. 

"And  you  have  been  staying  with  the  parents 
of  one  of  them — the  young  man  you  say  is  a 
prig?" 

"  I  didn't  say  that,"  responded  Grace,  quickly. 
"  I  said  you  might  call  him  so.  He  is  a  very  re- 
markable young  man,  arid  I  like  him  exceedingly  ; 
but  I  am  much  afraid  he  will  not  live  long.  He 
is  sadly  changed,  even  since  we  were  on  board 
ship  together.  His  poor  mother's  face  haunts 
me.  He  is  her  only  son." 

The  mocking  expression  of  Aunt  Susan's  coun- 
tenance changed  while  her  niece  was  speaking. 
The  eyes  were  veiled  with  a  tender  sympathy, 
which  contrasted  curiously  with  their  habitual 
outlook.  She,  too,  had  known  what  this  sorrow 
meant,  long  years  ago. 

"  Poor  woman  !  And  is  there  nothing  to  be 
done  ?" 

"  Perhaps  if  he  went  to  a  warm  climate,  and 
gave  up  his  professorship,  he  might  recover,  but 
that  is  just  what  he  won't  do." 

"  Then  he  doesn't  really  love  his  mother  !"  she 
cried,  impatiently.  "These  Americans  are  all 
alike — can't  rest — must  fret  themselves  to  fiddle- 
strings.  The  idea  of  a  man  sacrificing  his  life  to 
his  work !  It  is  positively  wicked." 

"  I  suspect  he  is  a  romantic  sort  of  cove,  who 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  261 

fancies  there  is  only  one  woman  in  the  world," 
said  her  nephew,  fixing  his  eyes  on  Grace.  "  If 
he  is  disappointed,  he  doesn't  care  to  live.  I  have 
known  one  chap  like  that.  It's  very  rum." 

His  sister  said  nothing.  She  rose  and  went  to 
the  window,  where  the  curtains  had  not  been 
dropped  before  the  gas-lit  street.  A  well-appoint- 
ed brougham  stood  at  the  door.  Grace  thought 
she  recognized  the  horses,  and  at  the  same  mo- 
ment the  negro  waiter  entered  and  asked  if  the 
ladies  were  at  home  to  Mrs.  Courtly. 

"  Certainly,"  said  Mrs.  Frampton.  Then,  as  the 
man  disappeared,  "  I  hear  she  is  a  delightful  per- 
son— not  only  from  Mordy,  but  others." 

"I  am  glad  you  hear  that,"  said  Grace,  smil- 
ing. "  She  is  a  delightful  person,  but  many 
women  are  jealous  of  her,  and  you  might  have 
heard,  as  I  did,  that  she  is  only  delightful  to  men, 
which  is  not  the  least  true." 

The  object  of  these  remarks  entered,  swathed 
in  velvet  and  silver-fox,  and  redolent  of  Parma 
violets.  Her  bright  smile,  graceful  manner,  and 
musical  voice  could  not  but  dispose  favorably  one 
as  sensitive  to  impressions  as  Mrs.  Frampton. 

"  I  do  not  feel  that  we  are  strangers — you  have 
been  so  good  to  my  children,"  she  said. 

Mrs.  Courtly  responded  in  a  like  strain,  and 
then, 


262  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  I  suppose  I  ought  to  apologize  for  calling  on 
you  just  as  you  have  arrived  from  a  long  journey, 
Mrs.  Frampton,  but  I  wanted  to  engage  you  all 
to  dine  with  me  to-morrow.  I  know  you  are  to 
be  here  but  a  few  days,  and  you  must  see  some- 
thing of  our  society — we  think  ourselves  very 
nice,  you  know.  I  say  '  we,'  though  I  don't  be- 
long to  Boston — only  come  in  occasionally  from 
my  solitude,  for  a  little  social  relaxation." 

"  Solitude  !  I  like  that !"  laughed  Ballinger. 
"  I  don't  believe  you  are  ever  alone,  Mrs.  Courtly. 
I  am  sure  you  have  a  regular  succession  of  repre- 
sentative men  and  women  :  literature,  fashion, 
and  the  fine  arts,  they  all  go  to  you,  and  you  take 
them  in." 

"  That  is  a  doubtful  compliment,"  and  the 
American  lady  gave  a  rippling  laugh,  "  but  I  am 
afraid  it  is  the  truth.  I  do  take  them  in — that  is, 
the  representatives  of  literature  and  the  fine  arts. 
They  think  I  know  something — I  am  just  clever 
enough  never  to  do  anything,  and  so  they  do  not 
discover  what  a  fraud  I  am.  As  to  fashion — oh, 
I  can  be  frivolous  enough,  as  you  have  seen. 
There  is  no  sham  about  that." 

"I  am  glad  to  hear  it,"  said  Mrs.  Frampton, 
nodding  her  head,  "  for  I  am  frivolous,  too — frivo- 
lous and  worldly,  as  this  very  superior  young 
woman,  my  niece,  is  always  pointing  out  to  me." 


A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  263 

"  What  a  detestable  creature  you  make  me  out ! 
Happily,  Mrs.  Courtly  knows  me  a  little.  When 
did  you  come  to  Boston,  Mrs.  Courtly,  and  where 
are  you  staying?" 

"  I  am  at  the  Vendome,  where  I  always  go.  I 
came  on  Saturday,  and  have  been  hunting  up 
some  of  my  friends  to  meet  you  to-morrow.  On 
Wednesday,  if  agreeable  to  you,  we  will  dine  at 
the  Country  Club,  where  they  have  a  little  in- 
formal dance,  ending  at  eleven  o'clock,  once  a 
week.  I  think  it  will  amuse  you.  If  it  snows, 
which  it  threatens  to  do  to-night,  we  will  go  in 
sleighs." 

Mrs.  Frampton  looked  petrified. 

"  What !  in  evening  dress?" 

"  Why,  yes  1  We  wrap  up  well,  with  fur  hoods 
and  double  veils,  and  wear  frocks  that  won't  tum- 
ble ;  and  the  drive  back,  under  a  full  moon,  as 
we  have  now,  will  be  delightful." 

"  Well,"  said  Mrs.  Frampton,  dubiously,  "  I 
never  did  anything  so  skittish  when  I  was  young 
— and  now  that  I  am  an  old  woman — what  if  I 
am  upset  ?" 

"  Oh,  you  won't  be  upset — and  if  you  were,  it 
wouldn't  hurt  you.  You  have  no  distance  to  fall, 
and  in  the  soft  white  snow — " 

"  Good  heavens  !  The  very  idea  of  it  sends 
cold  water  down  my  back.  No,  thank  you.  They 


264  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

shall  go,  but  you  must  excuse  me.  A  nocturnal 
sleighing-party — returning  from  a  ball — running 
races,  I  dare  say — no,  thank  you — not  for  me  !" 

Mrs.  Courtly's  prediction  was  verified.  The 
snow  came  down  heavily  before  morning.  The 
streets  were  blocked ;  the  horse-cars  moved  stealth- 
ily along.  Then  it  froze,  and  every  one  who  ven- 
tured from  his  door  trod  very  carefully,  trying  to 
obtain  some  hold  on  the  white  surface,  slippery  as 
glass  and  glistening  in  the  noonday  sun. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

THAT  morning,  at  breakfast  in  the  public  room, 
Mrs.  Frampton  was  outraged  at  having  a  glass  of 
ice-water  and  an  orange  given  to  her  before  the 
tea  was  served. 

"What  does  the  man  give  me  an  orange  for, 
such  a  morning  as  this  ?  As  to  this  ice-water,  I 
would  not  touch  a  drop  of  it,  in  any  weather.  I 
hope  you  have  not,  either  of  you,  taken  to  that 
dangerous  habit  ?" 

Then,  as  the  negro  in  attendance  leaned  re- 
flectively on  the  back  of  Grace's  chair,  his  round 
eyes  fixed  upon  the  animated  face  of  the  speaker, 
"  May  I  ask,"  she  continued,  "  if  that  gentleman 
of  color  always  listens  to  your  conversation  ?  Per- 
haps he  would  join  in  if  you  asked  him." 

"It's  a  way  they  have  here,"  murmured  her 
nephew.  "They  don't  mean  to  be  cheeky,  but 
servants  here  are  the  only  class  who  never,  by 
any  accident,  address  you  as  'sir.'  As  to  these 
waiter-fellows,  their  manners,  I  admit,  are  pecul- 
iar. One  darky  pulled  my  hat  off  niy  head  the 


266  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

other  day.  He  thought  he  was  doing  the  civil 
thing." 

She  threw  up  her  hands.  "  And,  pray,  did  you 
do  the  civil  thing  in  return  ?"  The  menu  for  the 
morning  meal  being  handed  to  her,  she  exclaimed, 
"  Good  heavens !  What  is  this  ?  '  Clam  chowder,' 
'  Squab  pie.'  What  on  earth  is  '  Squab  pie '  ? 
'Cold-slaw  and  shredded  beef!' — it  sounds  like 
cannibalism !  '  Flapjacks  and  maple  syrup  !' — a 
combination  of  fish  and  trees,  I  suppose !  '  Waf- 
fles !'  '  Buckwheat  cakes  !'  'Grits!'  'Dip  toast!' 
— is  that  another  word  for  'pap'?" — and  so  on, 
with  a  running  commentary,  down  the  bill-of- 
fare. 

Some  of  these  unknown  dishes,  however,  she 
tried,  and  candidly  owned  were  excellent,  and 
when  the  breakfast  was  despatched,  and  they  had 
returned  to  their  own  "  parlor,"  Mrs.  Frampton 
was  visibly  better  disposed  towards  the  outer 
world.  She  moved  one  of  the  ponderous  chairs 
to  the  window,  and  produced  a  long  roll  of  em- 
broidery. 

"That  is  what  I  have  not  seen  a  woman  do 
since  I  arrived  in  the  States,"  said  Mordaunt.  "  I 
dare  say  they  work  a  great  deal  in  strict  private, 
but  never  in  public.  They  don't  consider  it  '  the 
thing,'  I  believe.  They  are  very  angry  when  I 
say  so,  but  it  is  the  truth." 


A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  267 

"  Well,  there  is  no  great  virtue  that  I  can  see 
in  doing  this  sort  of  rubbish,"  said  his  aunt,  in 
her  most  amiable  manner.  "If  I  could  do  any- 
thing more  useful,  I  should.  But  I  can  talk  much 
better  when  I  am  pulling  something  about ;  and 
Grace  and  I  are  going  to  have  a  long  gossip, 
while  you  go  and  smoke  your  cigar,  and  bring 
us  back  the  news  out  of  one  of  those  dreadful, 
wicked  papers." 

"  You're  a  regular  Eve,  Aunt  Su,"  laughed  her 
nephew,  as  he  sauntered  to  the  door.  "  The 
woman  tempted  me,  and  I  did  eat." 

"  Ah !  Adam  was  a  poor  creature,"  returned 
Mrs.  Frampton,  as  she  put  on  her  spectacles ;  then, 
when  he  had  left  the  room,  "  I  am  not  at  all  sat- 
isfied about  Mordy,"  she  continued,  as  she  stabbed 
the  canvas  with  her  needle,  and  a  stream  of  san- 
guinary filoselle  followed  it. 

"Why,  aunty?" 

"Don't  you  see  how  much  more  silent  he  is, 
with  only  an  occasional  burst  of  his  old  fun  ? 
I  am  afraid  he  cares  —  really  cares  —  for  this 
girl." 

"And  if  he  does,  what  then?  There  is  really 
nothing  to  object  to  in  her.  Putting  her  beauty 
aside,  she  is  clever  —  in  her  way  —  wonderfully 
adaptable,  and  has  a  great  deal  of  character.  I 
don't  say  that  she  is  exactly  the  sister-in-law  I 


268  A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

should  have  selected,  but  then,  almost  certainly, 
the  girl  I  should  prefer  Mordy  would  not  look 
at.  If  Miss  Planter  makes  up  her  mind  to  mar- 
ry him,  which  I  am  not  at  all  sure  that  she 
will—" 

"The  idea!  Not  accept  Mordy,  who  might 
marry  almost  any  one  in  England?" 

"Nonsense,  aunty.  You  know  very  well  that, 
judged  by  your  own  standard — the  worldly  stand- 
ard—  a  poor  baronet,  without  any  transcendent 
abilities  to  advance  his  career,  is  not  a  match  for 
ambitious  mammas  or  daughters  to  jump  at.  If 
dear  Mordy  really  and  truly  falls  in  love  at  last 
with  this  American  girl,  and  if  she  returns 
his  love — she  won't  marry  him  unless  she  does 
— I  see  no  reason  why  they  should  not  be  very 
happy." 

"I  wish  it  had  been  the  Hurlstone  girl,"  said 
Mrs.  Frampton,  without  taking  her  eyes  from  her 
work.  "Besides  the  money  being  certain  in  her 
case,  there  are  the  relations.  The  Planters,  I  am 
told,  are  people  of  yesterday." 

"Yesterday,  or  the  day  before — does  it  make 
much  difference  ?" 

"The  father,  I  am  told,  is  impossible.  The 
mother — " 

"  You  heard  all  this  from  the  Hurlstones ;  it  is 
a  tainted  source.  People  are  even  more  jealous 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  269 

of  each  other  over  here,  it  seems  to  me,  than  in 
London.  And  in  this  case,  you  see,  there  are  pe- 
culiar reasons  for  jealousy.  If  you  meet  the  Plan- 
ters in  the  course  of  our  travels" — she  cautiously 
avoided  any  hint  of  the  Californian  rendezvous — • 
"you  must  not  be  prejudiced.  You  must  judge 
the  girl  upon  her  own  merits.  Promise  me  you 
will  do  this,  aunty." 

"  Oh  !  No  one  can  say  I  am  prejudiced.  That 
is  the  last  charge  that  can  be  brought  against 
me."  Grace  bit  her  lip,  and  bent  her  head  over 
a  dropped  stitch  in  her  knitting.  There  was  a 
little  pause.  Mrs.  Frampton  heaved  a  sigh,  then 
stretching  out  her  hand  to  her  work-basket,  drew 
from  the  depths  of  it  a  society  paper,  not  yet  a 
fortnight  old.  "  Look  here,  Gracey,"  she  contin- 
ued, as  she  opened  and  flattened  out  the  paper 
with  her  hand;  "there  is  a  subject  upon  which 
I  have  long  since  given  up  speaking  to  you.  I 
shouldn't  do  so  now  but  for  something  Mordy 
said  to  me  yesterday.  I  had  hoped  your  eyes 
were  gradually  opened  to  Mr.  Ivor  Lawrence's 
true  character.  I  told  Mordy  to  tell  you  the  com- 
mon topic  of  conversation — the  new  light  that 
has  been  thrown  upon  the  case.  And  now,  as  it 
seems  you  still  believe  in  the  man,  I  think  you 
should  see  this  paragraph,"  and  she  handed  the 
paper  to  her  niece.  It  ran  thus: 


270  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERT 

"With  regard  to  the  disputed  will  of  the  late  Mr. 
Tracy,  which  promises  to  be  a  cause  celebre,  we  under- 
stand that  the  attorney  who  drew  up  several  wills  for 
the  deceased,  between  the  years  1875  and  1887,  has  been 
traced  to  Victoria,  where  he  emigrated  on  account  of  his 
health.  He  is  subpoenaed  to  appear,  and  will  be  an  im- 
portant witness,  as  it  is  said  he  brings  with  him  dupli- 
cates of  these  wills,  which  appear  to  have  been  destroyed. 
The  evidence  of  this  witness,  as  testifying  to  the  affection 
which  subsisted  formerly  between  Mr.  Giles  Tracy  and 
his  uncle,  will,  it  is  said,  be  of  paramount  importance  on 
the  trial." 

Mrs.  Frampton's  eye  was  fixed  upon  her  niece  as 
Grace  read  this,  but  she  did  not  wince.  She  fold- 
ed the  paper  carefully,  and  returned  it  to  her  aunt. 

"Thank  you;  it  makes  no  difference  —  I  am 
sure  you  did  not  expect  that  it  would? — in  my 
opinion.  It  would  be  the  same  if  Mr.  Lawrence 
lost  his  case.  I  know  he  is  incapable  of  having 
used  his  influence  with  his  uncle  to  induce  him  to 
alter  his  will." 

"  Humph !  There  are  grave  doubts  whether  it 
is  not  forged."  Grace  gave  a  little  contemptuous 
smile.  "I  am  told  he  has  been  given  the  cold 
shoulder  at  his  club — one  man  cut  him  dead — and 
he  goes  nowhere." 

"  No ;  if  he  did,  he  would  have  come  to  us." 

Mrs.  Frampton  pulled  her  needle  so  irritably 
through  the  canvas  that  the  silk  nearly  snapped. 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  271 

"Thank  goodness  he  has  not.  If  he  had  be- 
haved like  a  gentleman,  and  come  forward  imme- 
diately his  uncle  died,  it  might  be  difficult  to 
shake  him.  off  now.  As  it  is,  he  cut  the  Gordian 
knot  himself." 

"We  will  not  go  over  the  old  ground  again, 
aunt.  The  trial  is  public  property;  I  can't  help 
hearing  it  discussed.  But  that  question  of  his 
'coming  forward,'  please,  must  never  be  spoken 
of.  Just  think  how  inconsistent  you  are,  dear. 
You  suggest  that  he  forged  ;  and  then  say  he 
would  have  behaved  like  a  gentleman  if,  having 
forged,  he  had  '  come  forward.'  The  fact  is,  Ivor 
Lawrence  is  a  very  proud,  sensitive  man.  I  be- 
lieve the  tenor  of  his  uncle's  will  was  a  surprise 
to  him,  and  when  he  was  told  it  was  to  be  dis- 
puted, and  the  charge  that  was  to  be  made  against 
him,  he  resolved  to  subject  none  of  his  friends  to 
the  ordeal  of  receiving  a  suspected  man  until  the 
trial  was  over.  And  now,  dear  aunt,  please  let 
the  subject  be  closed,  as  far  as  I  am  personally 
concerned.  You  are  the  only  person  who  knows 
something  of  what  I  have  suffered.  But  I  have 
been  lighter-hearted  and  braver  since  I  left  Eng- 
land. And  why  ?  Simply  because  time,  instead 
of  shaking  my  belief  in  the  man  whom  all  the 
world  suspects,  has  made  it  stronger.  At  first 
his  silence  crushed  me.  If  I  thought  my  friend 


272  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

unworthy,  I  should  still  be  crushed,  far  more  than 
at  first.  But  you  see  I  am  crushed  no  longer. 
Be  content  with  that." 

She  had  risen,  and  was  standing  before  her 
aunt,  who  looked  up,  over  her  spectacles,  literally 
dumfounded,  until  she  felt  two  strong  young 
arms  flung  round  her  neck  and  a  shower  of  kisses 
upon  her  cheek.  That  was  an  argument  she  never 
could  resist.  She  patted  the  girl's  back  with  one 
fat,  dimpled  hand,  while  she  wiped  away  a  furtive 
tear  with  the  other. 

"  God  bless  you,  child  !  You  are  too  good  and 
noble — yes,  too  noble — for  this  wretched,  miser- 
able world  of  ours." 

And  so  peace  was  restored  between  the  two 
women,  who,  being  very  unlike,  were  yet  warmly 
attached  to  each  other. 

Later,  they  went  forth  with  Mordaunt,  and 
walked  across  the  park,  on  planks  laid  upon  the 
pathway,  up  to  Beacon  Street,  and  were  reminded 
of  Bath,  as  one  looks  down  from  its  century-old 
crescent ;  and  then  they  crunched  the  frozen  snow 
under  their  spiked  shoes,  back  to  the  Museum 
of  Fine  Arts,  where  they  found  a  collection  of 
Blake's  strange  and  poetic  conceptions,  and 
some  memorable  sketches  by  W.  M.  Hunt,  an 
artist  of  rare  genius,  lately  deceased,  and  but 
little  known  in  England.  Copley's  portraits — 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERT  273 

Lord  Lyndhurst's  father — of  which  there  are  so 
few  examples  in  England,  also  interested  them ; 
and,  of  course,  there  were  the  usual  inevitable 
French  pictures,  which  are  the  staple  commodity 
of  all  collections  in  the  States.  They  passed  a 
pleasant  hour  here,  after  which  Mrs.  Frampton 
was  deposited  at  the  Brunswick,  as  she  declared 
nothing  would  induce  her  to  enter  the  electric 
car,  which  was  to  convey  her  nephew  and  niece 
into  the  heart  of  the  city. 

"  I  have  looked  inside  one,"  she  said ;  "  that 
is  enough  !  I  saw  a  double  row  of  people  stand- 
ing up  in  the  middle,  clinging  on  by  straps,  and 
jammed  against  the  knees  of  those  Avho  were 
seated !  Never  saw  anything  so  shocking  in  my 
life.  No,  thank  you.  I  will  go  in  a  carriage,  or 
on  my  ten  toes,  or  I  will  remain  at  home.  None 
of  those  dreadful  tramways  for  me  /" 

So  they  left  her,  and  went  their  ways.  And 
in  their  course  they  ran  up  against  Mordaunt's 
wiry  friend,  Reid.  He  said  he  had  come  to 
Boston  for  a  few  days'  visit  to  his  mother, 
"who  will  be  very  happy  to  call  on  you,  Miss 
Ballinger,  if  you  will  allow  her."  And  when 
Grace  had  expressed  her  willingness  to  be 
called  upon,  he  continued,  "  She  is  a  real  good 
woman,  my  mother ;  but  you  must  be  prepared 
for  some  tall  talk.  It  don't  amount  to  much, 
18 


274  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

but  it  takes  a  little  time  to  get  accustomed  to 
it." 

That  evening  the  party  assembled  by  Mrs. 
Courtly  to  meet  her  English  friends  was  pecul- 
iarly agreeable.  Besides  Mr.  Laffan  and  other 
distinguished  men,  there  were  three  ladies :  one, 
a  poetess  whose  stirring  verse  had  moved  a 
whole  nation's  heart,  and  two  sisters  whose  well- 
earned  reputation  for  brilliancy  had  won  for 
them  the  name  of  "The  Duplex  Burners." 

Mrs.  Frampton  was  at  her  best.  She  was  al- 
ways appreciative  of  talent,  more  especially  of 
conversational  talent,  and  would  toss  into  the 
caldron,  now  and  again,  a  pungent  remark  which 
stimulated  alike  the  powers  of  the  artists  and  the 
appetites  of  those  who  sat  at  meat. 

The  talk  turning  upon  American  modes  of 
spelling,  she  said,  in  her  trenchant  way, 

"I  should  have  been  whipped  when  I  was  a 
child,  if  I  had  spelled  theatre  t-e-r  instead  of  tre. 
Why,  it  is  neither  Latin  nor  any  other  tongue  !" 

"  We  let  '  the  dead  past  bury  its  dead,' "  was 
the  reply.  "  We  follow  the  living  tongues,  the 
tongues  in  your  head  and  mine,  and  those  dis- 
tinctly say  '  thea-fer.'  We  don't  approve  of  whip- 
ping little  girls  for  spelling  as  they  pronounce, 
even  if  the  result  be  to  produce  such  brilliant 
women  as  yourself,"  with  a  bow. 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  275 

Mrs.  Frampton  was  reduced  to  silence  for  a 
moment  by  this  un-English  compliment,  and  so 
her  ear  caught  another  that  was  being  proffered 
to  Grace.  Her  niece  was  deploring  the  loss  of 
the  letter  u  in  so  many  words  as  now  printed  in 
America. 

"  Do  you  really  like  the  u  dropped  in  such  a 
word  as  'parlor'?"  she  asked  of  her  neighbor. 

"  I  prefer  a  parlor  with  you  in  it,"  he  replied. 

Grace  laughed. 

"  You  are  trying  to  silence  me,  I  see.  But  do 
tell  me  why  you  will  change  our  c's  into  s's,  in 
such  words  as  '  offence '  and  '  defence' ?" 

"  I  suppose  we  think  that  in  '  offence '  and  '  de- 
fence '  you  English  are  always  at  sea  /"  returned 
her  incorrigible  neighbor. 

And  so  the  chaff  went  on. 

One  man  present  sustained  theories  which,  as 
coming  from  an  American,  were  curious.  He 
declared  there  was  over-education  in  his  country, 
and  used  all  the  arguments  in  support  of  this 
view  which  would  have  been  employed  by  an 
old  English  Tory. 

Mordaunt  Ballinger  stared  when  he  heard  a  cit- 
izen of  the  United  States  declare  that  muscle  and 
sinew  were  not  yet  driven  out  of  the  field  by  ma- 
chinery, that  scientific  absorption  was  an  evil,  and 
that  the  world's  work  cannot  be  done  by  the 


276  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVEEY 

brain  alone.  It  was  a  little  too  much,  even  for 
the  young  conservative  member,  when  this  clever 
supporter  of  paradoxes  maintained  that  people 
would  be  happier  if  they  knew  less,  and  that 
genius  was  more  sure  to  rise  from  a  poor  educa- 
tional plane  than  from  a  highly  cultivated  one. 

"  Certainly,"  assented  another,  "our  most  suc- 
cessful men  in  the  country  have  not  been  the 
best  educated." 

"Theirs  was  a  rich  soil,"  continued  the  first 
speaker,  "that  needed  no  top-dressing.  It  was 
just  suited  to  the  grain  it  had  to  grow.  Its 
strength  was  concentrated  on  that.  Manured  with 
learning,  all  manner  of  rank,  useless  stuff  would 
have  sprung  up  and  flourished  there." 

"  For  shame  !"  said  Mrs.  Courtly's  silvery  voice. 
"I  wonder  you  dare  to  talk  such  blasphemy  al- 
most within  the  shadow  of  Harvard  !  To  think 
that  I  should  live  to  hear  a  Bostouian  throw  such 
an  aspersion  on  '  belles-lettres.' " 

"  Ah !  dear  lady,  but  *  belles-lettres,'  like  other 
feminine  things,  are  so  apt  to  distract  our  minds 
from  the  only  serious  object  of  life — which,  of 
course,  is  money-getting !" 

This  elicited  hisses  and  laughter,  in  which  the 
speaker  himself  joined.  II  n'y  a  que  la  verite 
qui  blesse.  Boston  could  never  take  such  an  ac- 
cusation to  itself. 


A   VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVEKY  277 

"  One  would  fancy  you  were  from  Chicago !" 
said  Mrs.  Courtly. 

Now  Chicago  is  to  the  Bostonians  as  the  full 
moon  is  to  a  dog — they  are  never  tired  of  baying 
at  it. 

"  Well,  then,  I  am  from  Chicago.  I  was  there 
two  weeks  ago  on  business.  And  what  do  you 
suppose  I  saw  in  a  shop-window  ?  I  can  tell  you 
it  was  something  worth  going  to  Chicago  to  see. 
Why,  a  statue  of  the  Venus  de  Medici  in  a  Jaeger's 
combination  suit !" 

"  Great  Scot !"  cried  a  man  from  the  farther 
end  of  the  table,  "Jaeger  must  be  like  the  poet, 
nascitur  but  non  fit.  Poor  goddess !  '  To  what 
base  uses  we  may  return,  Horatio  !'  But  we  are 
a  practical  people.  Beauty  and  utility  with  us  go 
hand  in  hand.  Indeed,  you  see  that  in  this  case 
they  don't  stop  there." 

"No,"  said  one  of  the  ladies,  gravely.  "Life 
has  never  been  the  same  to  me  since  I  saw  Lord 
Byron's  head,  with  a  chestnut  wig  upon  it,  in  a 
'tonsorial  saloon,'  and  a  bust  of  the  young  Augus- 
tus at  an  optician's,  with  a  pair  of  blue  spectacles 
on  his  nose  !" 

Mrs.  Frampton,  meantime,  was  being  questioned 
by  her  neighbor  as  to  the  route  the  travellers 
meant  to  take  in  going  westward. 

"  I  suppose  you  go  through  Chicago  ?"  he  said. 


278  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"Ask  my  nephew.  I  am  as  dough  in  his  hands, 
and  the  dough  is  unleavened.  It  doesn't  rise  in 
the  oven  of  your  railway  carriages.  I  dread  the 
journey.  By  the  bye,  why  will  you  call  them 
'cars'?  My  idea  of  a  'car'  is  the  thing  I  remem- 
ber as  a  child  in  my  Roman  history — Tullia  tram- 
pling her  father  to  death,  you  know — and  so  on." 

"  We  don't  trample  our  fathers,  even  when  they 
are  very  much  in  the  way ;  but  we  like  short  cuts 
for  all  that.  Now  '  car '  is  a  short  cut  for  a  long 
carriage-drive." 

"  Oh !  but  I  beg  to  say  you  don't  always  go  in 
for  shortness.  You  call  a '  lift '  an  '  elevator,'  and 
you  always  *  conclude '  a  thing,  instead  of '  ending ' 
it.  I  must  tell  you  frankly  that  we  think  those 
long  words  horrid." 

"I  am  sorry  for  it,"  he  replied,  amused,  "but 
we,  on  our  side,  think  fashionable  English  slang, 
and  a  good  deal  of  fashionable  English  pronuncia- 
tion horrid.  There  is  a  lady  here,  lately  returned 
from  London,  who  speaks  so  beautifully  that  we 
can't  understand  more  than  half  she  says  !" 

Mrs.  Frampton  laughed.  She  was  quite  pleased 
with  her  neighbor.  If  he  carried  the  war  into 
the  enemy's  country,  she  felt  justified  in  saying  a 
tart  thing. 

"You  mean  that  she  no  longer  pronounces 
'  clerk '  as  if  it  rhymed  with  '  shirk '  and  '  work.' 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  279 

You  get  that,  and  the  tendency  to  nasal  into- 
nation from  your  Puritan  fathers.  We  retain 
a  Cavalier  broadness  and  boldness  of  utter- 
ance." 

"  Ah  !  I  see  the  broadness  and  boldness,"  re- 
turned the  American,  with  a  humorous  twitch  of 
the  lips.  "  Still,  all  evidence  shows  that  English- 
men of  Chaucer's  day  pronounced  '  clerk '  as  it  is 
written." 

"  Chaucer  ?  Good  heavens  !  you  don't  expect 
us  to  go  on  talking  as  they  did  in  Edward  III.'s 
reign  ?" 

"  Why  are  you  to  start  from  Charles  II. 
rather  than  Edward  III.  ?  '  Clark '  is  an  affecta- 
tion that  crept  into  the  language  in  the  seven- 
teenth century,  when  it  became  the  fashion  to 
talk  of  Jarsey  and  Barkley.  The  latter  I  be- 
lieve you  still  retain  in  fashionable  parlance." 

"  Of  course  !  The  man  or  woman  would  be 
lost  who  spoke  of  Berkley  Square." 

"But  worse  than  all  is  your  fashionable  pro- 
nunciation of  Pall  Mall.  Why  !  you  lose  all  the 
pleasant  old  association  and  courtly  flavor  of 
the  'Palace  Mall'  by  calling  it  'Pell  Mell.'  You 
might  as  well  call  it  'Helter-Skelter'  !" 

"Don't  talk  to  me  of  association,  or  accuracy, 
or  grammar,  or  anything  else.  Custom  overrides 
all  with  us." 


280  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  The  trouble  is,  that  you  will  not  allow  it  to 
do  so  with  us,"  he  returned,  smiling. 

"  Really,  I  think  we  might  be  allowed  to  know 
how  to  speak  our  own  language  !" 

"Not  if  you  go  on  changing  it  all  the  time, 
according  to  the  vagaries  of  fashion.  When 
we  have  gotten  hold  of  a  word,  we  stick  to  it. 
Look  at  that  poor  word  'genteel,'  which  was 
such  a  useful  servant  to  you  all  through  the 
last  century,  and  now  you  have  kicked  it  into 
the  gutter !" 

"  It  deserved  kicking  into  the  gutter.  It  had 
become  so  frayed  and  tarnished  that  it  wasn't  fit 
to  wear.  We  have  incorporated  a  number  of  new 
words  into  the  language,  so  no  one  can  complain 
because  we  discard  one  or  two." 

"If  the  new  ones  supplied  the  vacuum,  but 
they  do  not.  You  have  no  word  to  replace  '  gen- 
teel.' Your  argument  reminds  me  of  a  man  who, 
having  lost  his  boots,  put  on  two  hats  and  an 
overcoat !" 

Thus  they  sparred  amicably  through  that  pleas- 
ant dinner,  the  least  animated  participator  in  which, 
beyond  a  doubt,  was  Mordaunt  Ballinger.  And 
yet  he  sat  beside  Mrs.  Courtly,  whom  he  sincerely 
liked,  and  who,  though  she  tried  to  make  the  con- 
versation general,  found  an  opportunity  to  say  to 
him, 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  281 

"  I  have  heard  of  our  friends'  arrival  at  Pitts- 
burgh." 

"Do  they  speak  of  going  to  California?"  he 
asked,  quickly. 

"Mrs.  Planter's  cough  was  worse  as  soon  as 
she  got  home,"  replied  Mrs.  Courtly,  with  a  smile. 
"  That  promises  well." 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

MRS.  REID  called  the  next  day  with  her  son. 
She  was  a  solid-looking  lady  of  rather  severe  as- 
pect, with  spectacles,  as  unlike  as  possible  to  her 
thin,  quick-witted  son.  Mordaunt  was  out,  and 
Mrs.  Frarapton,  knowing  that  the  American  was 
the  friend  who  had  given  him  a  good  deal  of 
advice  as  to  investments,  tackled  him  at  once, 
leaving  his  mother  to  be  entertained  by  Grace. 
Mrs.  Frampton  riddled  him  through  with  her 
questions ;  but  he  was  equal  to  the  occasion,  and 
came  so  triumphantly  out  of  the  ordeal  that  she 
accepted  with  alacrity  Mrs.  Reid's  verbal  invita- 
tion to  dine  with  her  the  following  day. 

"  You  will  not  expect  a  large  party  " — Mrs. 
Reid  trod  heavily  on  each  word  as  she  spoke — 
"my  friend  Lady  Clydesdale,  and  one  or  two 
others,  will  be  with  me.  But  as  I  understand 
your  nephew  purposes  leaving  Boston  in  quite 
a  few  days,  I  was  anxious  to  secure  the  pleasure 
of  receiving  you,  if  possible." 

At  Lady  Clydesdale's  name  Grace  had  frowned 


A  VOYAGE    OP  DISCOVERY  283 

and  shaken  her  head  at  her  aunt,  but  it  was  no 
use.  Miss  Ballinger  even  went  so  far  as  to  say, 

"  I  am  afraid  that  I—" 

But  Mrs.  Frampton  nipped  her  in  the  bud. 

"  Nonsense  !  my  dear.  We  have  no  engage- 
ment, and  I  can't  possibly  leave  you  at  home. 
My  nephew  would  be  extremely  sorry  to  miss 
your  hospitable  invitation,  Mrs.  Reid.  We  shall 
be  delighted  to  dine  with  you." 

And  when  they  were  gone,  she  said, 

"I  like  that  man.  He  is  very  shrewd.  He 
may  be  valuable  to  Mordy.  I  wouldn't  miss  dining 
with  them  for  the  world.  As  to  your  wanting  to 
refuse  because  Lady  Clydesdale  is  to  be  there,  it 
is  too  foolish  !  The  woman  can't  eat  you." 

"  I  should  disagree  with  her  if  she  did,"  laughed 
Grace.  "  Of  course,  if  you  and  Mordy  both  want 
to  go,  I  am  ready  to  sacrifice  myself,  as  I  did,  in- 
deed, just  now.  You  left  me  to  Mrs.  Reid's  mercy, 
and  she  has  very  little.  Her  son  prepared  me  for 
her  '  tall  talk ';  but  its  height  did  not  impress  me 
so  much  as  its  weight.  Between  her  and  Lady 
Clydesdale,  you  will  carry  home  nothing  of  me 
but  a  few  mangled  remains." 

That  same  day  two  of  their  agreeable  acquaint- 
ances of  the  previous  evening  escorted  them  to 
the  State  House,  with  its  gilded  dome  and  fine 
eighteenth-century  decorations.  They  ascended 


284  A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY 

a  lofty  tower,  and  gained  a  comprehensive  view 
of  the  city,  the  winding  river,  and  Charlestown, 
and  beyond  it  the  south  coast  and  island-sprinkled 
sea.  It  was  a  clear,  brilliant  day,  though  intense- 
ly cold.  The  dark  boats  on  the  glittering  river, 
the  numerous  vanes  and  pinnacles  that  rose  above 
the  snow-bound  city  and  caught  the  sunlight,  the 
forest  of  masts  in  the  hai'bor  and  silhouettes  of 
wide-armed  elms  upon  the  Common,  the  frozen 
lake  on  which  hundreds  were  skating  and  sliding 
merrily,  and  over  all  a  span  of  wind-swept  sky, 
almost  Florentine  in  its  hard,  blue  depth,  startled 
the  English  travellers  with  unexpected  beauty. 

"  This  is  really  charming  !"  cried  Mrs.  Framp- 
ton.  And  after  such  an  admission  there  was  noth- 
ing more  to  be  said. 

Then  they  visited  several  book-stores  and  the 
noble  public  library.  At  last,  when  the  sky  was 
growing  the  color  of  a  tea-rose,  against  which 
church  tower  and  steeple  uprose  in  solid  purple, 
they  recrossed  the  park,  and  Grace  and  Mordaunt 
hastened  to  dress  for  the  Country  Club  dinner. 

At  six  o'clock  a  double  sleigh  drove  to  the  door, 
with  a  great  jingling  of  bells,  and  servants  fur 
capped  and  coated ;  and  inside  the  open  shell- 
shaped  carriage  two  figures — one,  a  bundle  of 
Shetland  veils  and  sable,  out  of  which  Mrs. 
Courtly's  silvery  voice  arose,  the  other,  an  atten- 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  285 

uated  stroke  of  black,  like  a  note  of  admiration, 
as  he  leaped  out  and  stood  upright  in  the  snow. 
This  proved  to  be  John  Reid. 

The  brother  and  sister  were  equally  pleased  to 
find  their  brisk  American  friend  of  the  party,  and 
Mrs.  Courtly  explained  that  he  had  called  on  her 
late  in  the  afternoon,  when  she  had  been  so  fort- 
unate as  to  find  he  could  fill  the  seat  left  suddenly 
vacant.  She  added  in  a  whisper  to  Grace,  while 
the  two  men  were  talking, 

"  His  mother  always  tries  to  prevent  his  calling 
on  me,  if  he  is  in  Boston  when  I  happen  to  be 
here.  She  will  be  extremely  angry  at  our  carry- 
ing him  off  to-night." 

The  moon  had  not  yet  risen,  and  the  drive  to 
the  Country  Club  in  the  dark  would  have  seemed 
long  but  for  the  ball  of  talk  tossed  to  and  fro. 
Mrs.  Courtly  was  in  her  brightest  and  youngest 
mood,  ready  to  enjoy,  and  therefore  to  make 
others  enjoy,  everything.  They  drove  at  length 
through  some  gates  into  a  small  park,  and,  at 
the  tail  of  several  other  sleighs,  alighted  at  a 
long  house,  surrounded  by  a  wide  balcony  or 
"  piazza,"  into  which  all  the  rooms  on  the  ground 
floor  opened.  None  were  very  large,  and  in  near- 
ly all  small  round  tables  were  laid  for  dinner,  so 
as  to  accommodate  parties  of  four  and  six  sepa- 
rately. Some  were  already  occupied;  some  were 


286  A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY 

awaiting  the  descent  of  the  ladies  from  their 
tiring-chamber. 

Nearly  every  one  had  arrived,  and  the  whole 
place  was  alive  with  light  and  bustle,  greetings 
in  merry,  high-pitched  voices;  waiters,  heavily 
laden,  charging  to  and  fro  through  the  crowd ; 
men  with  frozen  moustaches  thawing  before  the 
bright  wood -fires  ;  nymphs  in  procession  down 
the  stairs,  emerging  miraculously  fresh  from  their 
hoods  and  mantles. 

The  dinner  was  excellent,  and  the  spirit  in 
which  it  was  evident  that  every  one  sat  down  to 
it  was  that  proper  to  all  entertainment,  but  which 
so  often  with  the  English  is  conspicuous  by  its  ab- 
sence. They  came,  young  and  old,  with  the  reso- 
lute intention  of  amusing  themselves.  If  they  had 
not  "  felt  like  "  amusing  themselves,  they  would 
have  stayed  away.  Look  round  the  room,  and  you 
could  see  nowhere  that  air  of  resignation — that  air 
which  says,  "  Though  I  should  drop  with  fatigue 
and  ennui,  I  will  go  through  with  it,  never  fear  !" 
— which  is  so  piteous  on  the  faces,  nay,  on  the 
very  backs — of  so  many  British  chaperons.  It  is 
true  there  were  but  few  of  these.  Two  and  three 
girls  could  come  with  one  matron,  leaving  their 
respective  mothers  at  home.  If  the  mothers  came, 
it  was  because  they  liked  it ;  in  some  instances, 
because  they  meant  to  dance  themselves.  This 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  287 

gayety  of  temperament  and  power  of  enjoyment 
was,  of  course,  yet  more  remarkable  when,  after 
dinner — and  a  little  interval  for  digestion,  coffee, 
and  cigars  —  men  and  women  reassembled  in  a 
pretty  ball-room  upstairs.  The  hilarity  then 
seemed  infectious.  Mordaunt  had  not  appeared 
so  animated  since  he  had  parted  from  Clare 
Planter.  He  danced  with  all  the  prettiest  girls, 
was  pronounced  to  be  "too  nice  for  anything," 
and  encountered,  in  consequence,  some  scowls 
from  jealous  swains.  At  first  it  was  only  the 
young  who  "took  the  floor."  But  soon  elderly 
gentlemen  and  mature  dowagers  were  to  be  seen 
advancing,  and  receding,  and  gyrating,  in  the 
complicated  movements  of  the  waltz  and  polka, 
as  naturalized  in  America.  Mrs.  Courtly,  after 
presenting  half  a  dozen  men  to  Grace,  was  car- 
ried off  by  a  youth,  renowned  for  his  dancing, 
and  who  always  declared  that  no  one  waltzed 
like  her.  This  was  followed  by  "  Dancing  in  the 
Barn,"  which  Mordaunt  had  been  taught  at  Brack- 
ly,  and  which  he  and  Mrs.  Courtly  now  performed 
greatly  to  their  own  satisfaction  and  that  of  the 
few  spectators  who  were  not  themselves  prancing 
round  the  room.  Among  those  few  were  Grace 
and  John  Reid. 

"  Wouldn't  my  mother  be  down  on  Mrs.  Court- 
ly, if  she  could  see  her?"  he  said,  laughing. 


288  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"What  for?  For  making  herself  and  others 
happy?" 

"  Why,  yes,  in  a  icay,"  he  replied,  still  chuck- 
ling. "  You  see,  she  is  kinder  severe,  as  we  Yan- 
kees say,  on  Mrs.  Courtly,  who,  she  declares,  tries 
to  captivate  every  man  she  comes  near.  I  tell  her 
it  wants  no  trying — we  all  take  to  Mrs.  Courtly  as 
ducks  do  to  water.  That  makes  my  mother  mad." 

"  I  hope  Boston  is  not  very  censorious  ?" 

"  Well,  you  see,  I  don't  live  in  Boston,"  he  re- 
plied, with  becoming  caution.  "  There  are  quite  a 
number  of  sets  here,  and,  as  in  other  big  cities, 
I  suppose,  they  sit  on  each  other — rather.  My 
mother  belongs  to  the  earnest  set.  '  There  are 
no  flies  on  her.''  (Have  you  heard  the  Salvation 
Army  hymn  ?  Well,  I  won't  repeat  it.  It  would 
shock  you.)  She  is  a  real  good  woman,  and 
spends  all  her  time  rummaging  about  at  commit- 
tees, and  schools,  and  hospitals.  The  trouble  is, 
she  expects  every  one  to  have  the  same  tastes, 
and  can't  tolerate  what  she  calls  '  frivolity.' " 

"  Then  she  will  not  tolerate  me.  I  do  nothing 
useful.  Do  you  come  often  to  Boston  ?" 

"  Once  or  twice  a  year,  for  a  few  days.  In  the 
summer  my  mother  meets  me  at  Newport,  or  we 
cross  the  ocean  together.  I  allow  I  like  that  bet- 
ter than  coming  here,  where  my  mother's  friends 
are — well,  not  quite  my  style." 


A  VOYAGE   OF  DISCOVERY  289 

Then  a  man  came  up  and  claimed  Grace's  hand 
for  "  the  german,"  and  she  had  no  further  oppor- 
tunity of  hearing  Mr.  Reid's  views.  The  dance 
was  over  at  eleven  o'clock  ;  and  now  began  once 
more  a  rapid  eclipse  of  all  the  meteors,  in  their 
shining  array,  under  soft  but  solid  clouds  of 
fur ;  and  outside  there  was  a  jingling  of  bells,  a 
champing  of  bits,  and  stamping  of  hoofs  on  the 
frozen  snow,  and  the  white  moonlight  streamed 
down  over  all,  glistening  like  silver  on  the  icicles 
that  depended  from  the  balcony,  and  articulating 
every  object  in  blue-black  shadow  on  the  snow. 

The  drive  back  was  like  a  fairy  dream,  with 
this  advantage,  it  was  exhilarating ;  while  dreams 
often  enervate,  leaving  their  recipient,  on  waking, 
less  well  able  to  cope  with  hard,  prosaic  fact. 
They  flew  along  in  procession,  with  their  clang- 
ing bells,  over  the  buraished  snow,  every  leafless 
twig  told  out  in  tracery  of  shadow  on  the  road- 
way, every  "  sentinel  pine,"  equipped  in  white  fur, 
standing  erect  and  motionless  against  the  still, 
blue  night.  The  moon  was  at  its  full,  and  smote 
the  foreheads  of  the  little  painted  wooden  houses 
with  its  blinding  light,  and  flooded  the  distant 
country,  lifting  blue  hills,  on  the  horizon,  into 
that  prominence  which  vagueness  lends  to  out- 
lines, from  which  the  eye  in  sunlight  is  distracted 
by  a  thousand  small  intervening  details. 
19 


290  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  It  was  perfect  enchantment !"  said  Grace  to 
her  aunt  the  next  morning  at  breakfast. 

"Yes,  it  was  awfully  jolly,"  said  her  brother. 
"And  then  Reid  is  such  a  good  sort.  We  were 
lucky  to  have  him  with  us.  Some  of  these  young 
chaps,  I  find,  are  very  jealous  of  one.  Such  rot, 
you  know.  I  overheard  one  of  them  say  to  a  girl 
whom  I  had  asked  to  dance,  '  Of  course  ice  have 
none  of  us  any  chance  now.  You'll  want  to  dance 
with  the  Englishman  all  the  time  !'  I  should  like 
to  have  kicked  him." 

"Never  mind  about  them /  they  don't  interest 
me,"  said  Mrs.  Frampton.  "Tell  me  what  Mr. 
Reid  said.  Did  you  ask  him  anything  about 
'  Readings '  or  '  Central  Pacifies '  ?" 

"Bless  you!  no,  Aunt  Su.  Fancy  talking  of 
investments  en  partie  carree  with  Mrs.  Courtly. 
She  would  have  stopped  the  sleigh,  and  have 
begged  us  to  get  out." 

Mrs.  Reid's  dinner  that  evening,  in  her  mag- 
nificent house  in  Commonwealth  Avenue,  was  as 
typical,  in  its  way,  as  Mrs.  Courtly's  had  been. 
There  were  six  guests,  besides  Lady  Clydesdale, 
invited  to  meet  our  English  friends,  and  most  of 
them  appeared  to  be  persons  devoted,  body  and 
soul,  to  some  one  scientific,  religious,  or  philan- 
thropic cause.  Genuine  enthusiasm  about  any- 
thing is  too  rare  for  me  to  indulge  in  a  little  cheap 


A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  291 

satire  about  it.  Four  of  these  guests  struck  both 
Mrs.  Frampton  and  Grace  as  kindly,  honest-mind- 
ed men  and  women,  not  stuck-up  with  the  vanity 
of  well-doing,  but  with  intelligence  perhaps  a  little 
unduly  inflamed  over  the  propagation  or  extermi- 
nation of  something  or  other.  The  fifth  was  Miss 
Lobb,  who  was  as  drastic,  as  universal,  and  as  un- 
relenting in  her  questions  as  she  had  been  on 
board  the  Teutonic.  The  sixth  was  a  merry  little 
spinster  of  forty,  with  a  cropped  head  and  eye- 
brows like  circumflex  accents,  who  seemed  strange- 
ly out  of  place  in  that  serious  assembly,  until  it 
transpired  that  she  wrote  for  the  daily  papers 
— was  what  is  called  an  "editor,"  which  only 
means  the  caterer  of  certain  branches  of  informa- 
tion. Being  a  protegee  of  Mrs.  Reid's,  she  was 
invited  to  her  table  whenever  there  was  "copy" 
to  be  picked  up.  Her  name  was  Pie,  which  gave 
rise  to  a  number  of  facile  jokes  among  her  friends 
— and  she  had  many.  For  she  was  always  good- 
humored,  never  wounded  any  one  by  her  writing, 
and  was  often  extremely  serviceable  to  Mrs.  Reid 
and  others  in  airing  the  views  and  projects  they 
desired  to  make  public.  Mordaunt,  who  took  Mrs. 
Reid  in  to  dinner,  had  Miss  Pie  on  his  other  side. 
Mrs.  Reid  naturally  sat  at  the  head  of  her  table ; 
but,  the  party  consisting  of  twelve,  it  was  impossi- 
ble, in  the  alternation  of  guests,  that  her  son  should 


292  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

sit  opposite  her.  He  took  Lady  Clydesdale  in  to 
dinner,  and  placed  her  on  bis  left,  facing  Mrs. 
Reid.  Grace,  on  his  right,  found,  to  her  extreme 
annoyance,  that  she  was  not  only  next  but  one  to 
Lady  Clydesdale,  but,  from  her  position  close  to 
the  angle,  could  not  avoid  conversation  with  her 
countrywoman  if  it  was  thrust  upon  her. 

Next  to  Grace  was  an  ancient  bachelor,  of 
great  wealth  and  boundless  liberality,  who  had 
founded  and  endowed  several  charitable  institu- 
tions, and  whose  purse-strings  were  so  readily 
untied  that  he  was  attacked  by  every  promoter 
of  beneficence  in  turn.  He  took  Mrs.  Frampton 
in  to  dinner,  upon  whose  left  sat  an  eminent  doc- 
tor. Then  came  Mrs.  Reid,  dominating  the  table ; 
and  on  the  other  side,  next  to  Miss  Pie,  a  Uni- 
tarian minister,  naturally  voluble,  but  utterly 
quelled  by  Miss  Lobb,  who  was  next  him.  The 
individual  who  sat  between  this  terrible  lady — 
before  whom  most  men  fled — and  Lady  Clydes- 
dale was  a  business  man,  to  whom  she  devoted 
most  of  her  attention  during  dinner. 

It  had  not  advanced  far  when  the  hostess,  plac- 
ing her  heavy  artillery  into  position,  directed  a 
slow  shot  at  Mrs.  Frampton. 

"  I  regret  that,  during  your  too  brief  stay  here, 
you  should  not  have  come  into  contact  with  the 
higher  educational  and  progressive  life  of  Boston, 


A    VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY  293 

Mrs.  Frampton.  I  have  been  deploring  to  Sir 
Mordaunt  Ballinger  that  he  should  have  seen  only 
the  frivolous  side  of  our  society.  There  is  anoth- 
er— that  of  culture,  that  of  philosophical  investi- 
gation, that  of  enthusiasm  for  humanity.  These 
are  not  to  he  found  at  Country  Club  balls." 

"No.  They  would  be  rather  out  of  place 
there.  But  you  have  given  us  enough  of  all  those 
good  things  here  to-night  to  readjust  the  balance, 
I  fancy." 

And  Mrs.  Frampton  said  this  with  a  pleasant 
smile,  which  —  probably  to  all  but  Miss  Pie — 
robbed  the  rejoinder  of  any  latent  satire. 

The  benevolent  old  bachelor  on  her  left  here 
claimed  her  attention  with  a  remark,  which  left 
Mrs.  Reid  no  choice  but  to  withdraw  her  field- 
pieces.  She  turned  to  her  right. 

Mordaunt  had  been  talking  for  the  last  few 
minutes  to  the  bright  little  spinster.  He  found 
a  hand  laid  heavily  upon  his  arm,  and  a  voice 
hurtled  past  him, 

"My  dear  Pie,  I  cannot  allow  you  to  monop- 
olize Sir  Mordaunt  entirely.  She  is  a  savory  Pie, 
but  must  be  cut  sometimes.  (You  forgive  my 
little  joke,  dear  ?)  I  was  going  to  tell  you,  Sir 
Mordaunt,  of  my  disappointment  in  not  having 
secured  the  most  delightful  woman  to  meet  you 
this  evening — the  person  of  all  others  who  is  a 


294  A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

representative  of  what  is  noblest,  most  cultivated, 
most  advanced,  among  American  women." 

"  Ah  !"  exclaimed  Mordaunt,  maliciously.  "  Of 
course  I  know  whom  you  mean.  That  description 
can  only  refer  to  one  woman." 

"  Do  you  mean  that  you  have  met  her  ?" — this 
with  heavy-eyed  surprise. 

"Of  course  I  have.  Mrs.  Courtly  and  I  are 
great  friends." 

She  threw  up  her  hands,  and  at  the  same  mo- 
ment caught  Lady  Clydesdale's  eye  by  inclining 
her  head  a  little  to  one  side. 

"  That  woman !"  she  almost  groaned.  Then 
she  leaned  forward,  and  said,  down  the  table,  with 
solemnity, 

"My  dear  Lady  Clydesdale,  will  you  tell  your 
countryman  here  that  we  have  nobler  types  of 
womanhood  than  Mrs.  Courtly  ;  that  in  our  ear- 
nest seeking  after  the  light  we  entirely  repudiate 
that  class  of  persons  —  worldly  pleasure-seekers, 
whose  influence  over  the  youth  of  both  sexes  we 
hold  to  be  very  pernicious." 

John  Reid  and  Mordaunt  exchanged  glances, 
and  in  John's  was  the  faintest  indication  of  a 
twinkle. 

"I  should  not  esteem  this  country  as  I  do  if 
it  were  made  up  of  Mrs.  Courtlys  !"  said  Lady 
Clydesdale,  severely. 


A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  295 

"Widows,  who  only  think  of  ensnaring  men  !" 
cried  Miss  Lobb. 

"Come,  my  dear,"  said  the  merry  little  Pie, 
"you  and  I  do  just  the  same,  all  the  time,  only 
we  don't  succeed  as  well." 

There  was  some  natural  laughter  at  this,  but 
Mrs.  Reid  could  not  encourage  levity  on  so  grave 
a  subject. 

"  At  her  time  of  life,"  she  said,  "  still  to  court 
the  society  of  the  young  and  giddy — to  dance 
and  flirt  as  she  does  !  Mrs.  Frampton,  I  trust 
you  understand  that  is  not  the  stamp  of  woman 
we  approve  of." 

"Really?  Well,  it  is  very  difficult  to  please 
every  one.  She  seems  to  please  a  great  many." 

"  Too  many  !  That  is  the  trouble," — this  with 
an  ominous  shake  of  the  head.  "  Men  are  so  easily 
deluded  !" 

"She  does  not  only  charm  men,"  said  Grace, 
who  felt  it  was  cowardly  to  remain  longer  silent ; 
"  she  can  delight  women  also.  She  is  the  most 
many-sided  person  I  have  ever  met — with  a  gi'eat 
deal  more  depth  than  people  give  her  credit  for." 

"  My  !  what  bravery  !"  chuckled  Miss  Pie, 
under  her  breath. 

"No  one  doubts  her  depth"  rejoined  Lady 
Clydesdale,  sarcastically  ;  "  but  every  one  knows 
you  have  peculiar  opinions,  Miss  Ballinger,  about 


296  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

conduct,  both  in  men  and  women.  If  you  like 
people,  you  defend  them,  no  matter  what  they 
do." 

"  How  ought  I  to  behave  when  I  hear  you 
abused,  Lady  Clydesdale  ?"  she  asked,  white  with 
anger,  for  she  had  a  premonition  of  what  was 
coming. 

"  Time  enough  for  that  when  I  have  done  some- 
thing to  forfeit  public  esteem,"  she  replied,  with 
perfect  coolness.  "  At  present  I  trust  my  con- 
duct needs  no  defence.  Have  you  heard,  by  the 
bye,  anything  more  of  that  terrible  story  about 
Mr.  Ivor  Lawrence.  You  knew  him,  I  think, 
rather  well?" 

"Yes,  I  did,"  Grace  replied,  flaming  up,  and 
looking  straight  into  her  antagonist's  eyes.  "  I 
knew  him  to  be  an  honorable  man,  utterly  inca- 
pable of  the  meanness  of  which  he  is  accused  !" 

"  You  think  so  ?  I  hope  you  may  not  be  mis- 
taken ;  but  I  fear  there  is  no  doubt  of  his  guilt. 
It  is  only  another  instance  of  human  frailty." 

"  The  worst  human  frailty  is  repeating  and  be- 
lieving such  falsehoods  !"  returned  the  girl,  in  a 
voice  tremulous  with  indignation. 

"We  all  knew  him  rather  well,"  Mordaunt 
called  out  from  the  other  end  of  the  table,  com- 
ing, like  a  gallant  gentleman  as  he  was,  to  his 
sister's  rescue.  "  We  are  sure  he  will  be  proved 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVEKY  297 

innocent  of  the  charge,  but  in  the  meantime  we 
avoid  the  subject,  don't  you  know." 

"I  can  quite  understand  that,"  replied  Lady 
Clydesdale,  with  a  very  peculiar  inflection.  "It 
is  so  very  difficult  sometimes  to  speak  the  truth 
about — one's  friends.  He  was  no  friend  of  mine 
— so  I  can  do  it." 

"  We  shall  find  no  difficulty  in  doing  that  about 
you,  Lady  Clydesdale.  I  know  you  are  truth  it- 
self, and  you  will  supply  us  with  all  the  details." 

Mrs.  Reid,  who  saw  that  the  relations  between 
her  English  guests  were  strained,  here  swooped 
down  upon  the  young  man,  while  her  son,  at  the 
other  end  of  the  table,  diverted  Lady  Clydes- 
dale's attention  to  the  congenial  subject  of  female 
suffrage. 

After  dinner,  in  the  drawing-room,  Miss  Pie 
came  and  sat  beside  Grace. 

"  I  admired  you  so  much  standing  up  for  your 
friends  at  dinner — Mrs.  Courtly  and  that  English- 
man. Lady  Clydesdale  is  a  very  able  woman — 
quite  a  pioneer  for  our  sex.  But  she  is  a  little 
apt  to  lay  down  the  law." 

"  It  would  be  a  bad  thing  if  the  law  was  what 
she  lays  down.  I  think  she  is  more  likely  to  do 
harm  than  good  to  any  cause  she  sustains." 

"  My  !   I  am  afraid  you  are  not  very  advanced, 


298  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY. 

Miss  Ballinger,"  said  the  little  lady,  with  a  twin- 
kling eye.  "  Here  we  have  to  keep  going  all  the 
time,  or  we  get  unhooked,  and  the  train  goes  on 
without  us.  Lady  Clydesdale  is  a  powerful  engine. 
Some  of  her  opinions,  from  a  member  of  the  Brit- 
ish aristocracy,  have  been  an  eye-opener  to  us. 
But  we  of  the  press,  of  course,  are  bound  to 
catch  on,  and  support  her  in  her  levelling  views 
— whether  wre  quite  believe  them  or  not,"  she 
added,  laughing. 

"  In  some  ways  you  seem  to  be  more  '  respect- 
ers of  persons '  than  we,"  said  Grace.  "  If  the 
'  level '  you  preach  is  the  broad  humanity  level, 
irrespective  of  wealth,  or  brains,  or  race,  how  are 
you  going  to  reconcile  your  attitude  towards  ne- 
groes, whom  you  will  not  associate  with,  nor  even 
allow  to  sit  down  at  a  public  table  with  you?" 

"Well,  there  are  reasons  for  that,"  returned 
Miss  Pie,  nodding  her  cropped  head  vigorously. 
"But,  apart  from  other  considerations,  the  preju- 
dices of  race  are  not  to  be  argued  about.  They 
may  be  just  as  irrational  as  the  repugnance  some 
people  have  to  snakes,  some  to  cats,  some  to  spi- 
ders. But  you  were  asking  what '  level'  we  preach. 
Why,  the  level  of  success  and  prosperity,  to  be 
sure  !  We  say  one  man  is  as  good  as  another,  if  he 
is  only  successful ;  and  if  we  educate  the  poor, 
and  fire  them  with  ambition,  why  should  not 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  299 

every  one  be  prosperous?  Why  should  there  be 
those  terrible  inequalities  of  fortune  ?" 

"  Unless  you  can  establish  an  equality  of  brain, 
of  physical  strength  and  energy,  how  is  it  possible 
that  all  men  shall  be  equal?  It  was  never  so  from 
the  beginning  of  time.  Were  Cain  and  Abel 
equal  ?  Your  country  being  comparatively  new, 
there  is  a  greater  demand  for  laborers  in  every 
field — a  greater  space  for  labor.  It  is  not  so  with 
us  ;  it  will  not  be  so  with  you  some  day.  And 
to  my  thinking  Lady  Clydesdale's  socialistic  doc- 
trines are  calculated  to  make  people  dissatisfied 
with  '  that  state  of  life  unto  which  it  hath  pleased 
God  to  call' them." 

The  little  lady  rubbed  her  hands,  and  laughed. 

"  I  am  quite  satisfied  with  mine — especially  to- 
night. It  has  been  real  nice  to  have  a  talk  with 

O 

you,  Miss  Ballinger.  We  get  into  such  a  groove 
of  thinking  !  You  take  one  right  off  the  line,  back 
into  the  tracks  of  the  Old  World." 

And  then  some  man  came  up,  and  the  conver- 
sation ended. 


CHAPTER   XIX 

THE  morning  after  this  dinner,  Mordaunt,  look- 
ing up  from  his  newspaper,  said  with  a  laugh, 

"  Well !  You've  done  it  this  time,  Gracey — 
you  profited  by  experience,  and  were  civil  to  that 
jolly  little  woman  who  sat  next  me  at  dinner.  I 
didn't  know  she  was  a  press  writer  till  we  were 
well  through,  but  we  got  on  like  a  house  a-fire, 
and  here  is  your  reward  and  mine." 

Then  he  read  aloud  : 

" '  Mrs.  Reid  offered  a  dinner  at  her  sumptuous 
residence  in  Commonwealth  Avenue,  last  night, 
to  the  Countess  of  Clydesdale,  Sir  Mordaunt 
Ballinger,  Bart.,  M.P.,  Miss  Ballinger,  and  Mrs. 
Frampton.  Some  of  our  most  prominent  citizens 
were  invited  to  meet  the  distinguished  guests,  and 
especial  interest  was  felt  in  the  presence  of  the 
son  and  daughter  of  an  Englishman  who  was  so 
firm  a  friend  to  America,  and  so  honored  here,  as 
the  late  Sir  Henry  Ballinger.  Of  the  countess, 
that  advanced  thinker,  who  recently  addressed  a 
large  audience  on  woman's  rights,  it  is  needless 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  301 

to  speak.  Mrs.  Frampton,  Sir  Mordaunt's  aunt, 
is  an  elderly  lady,  evidently  of  great  bodily  and 
mental  activity.  The  present  baronet,  like  his 
father,  is  a  Conservative  in  politics,  and  has  the 
stalwart  bearing  and  aristocratic  air  that,  we  as- 
sociate with  the  heroes  of  modern  English  ro- 
mance. He  is  eager  to  acquire  knowledge  as  to 
the  natural  resources  of  our  country,  and  the  ur- 
banity of  his  manner  and  his  brilliant  social  quali- 
ties'— ho !  ho  ! — 'must  make  him  welcome  where- 
ever  he  goes.  As  to  his  sister,  the  accounts  which 
had  reached  us  of  her  beauty  and  charm  do  scant 
justice  to  this  fascinating  English  belle,  who  is 
not  only  lovely  to  a  fault,  but  can  be  impassioned 
in  her  eloquence  when  roused,  and  combines  acute- 
ness  of  intellect  with  the  frankness  of  a  child.'  " 

"  Well  done  !"  cried  Mrs.  Frampton.  "  You  owe 
Lady  Clydesdale  something  for  having  brought 
out  your  '  impassioned  eloquence,'  Gracey." 

Then,  seeing  that  her  niece  looked  annoyed, 
while  a  flush  mounted  to  the  roots  of  the  girl's 
hair,  she  felt  it  was  unwise  to  have  alluded  to 
that  scene,  and  tried  to  change  the  subject.  But 
Grace,  witb  a  resolute  disregard  to  pain,  said  pres- 
ently, 

"  It  was  very  nice  of  you,  Mordy,  to  speak  up 
as  you  did  last  night,  feeling  as  you  do  on  the 
subject.  I  am  ashamed  to  have  been  so  roused, 


302  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

aunty.  I  am  ashamed  to  think  such  a  woman 
could  have  it  in  her  power  to  make  me  show 
what  I  felt.  Passion  should  not  be  wasted  on 
donkeys  —  even  on  malevolent  donkeys.  This 
one  tries  to  knock  you  down,  and  ride  over  you. 
If  she  can  find  out  where  your  heart  is,  she  will 
plant  her  hoofs  there.  If  not,  she  will  kick  at 
your  brains.  Nothing  shall  induce  me  ever  to 
speak  to  her  again." 

Her  aunt  and  her  brother  exchanged  glances,  but 
no  word  passed  ;  and  presently  Mordaunt  began 
discussing  financial  matters  with  Mrs.  Frampton, 
expressing  his  intention  of  pushing  on  to  Col- 
orado as  soon  as  possible.  The  relative  merits 
of  ranches,  mines,  and  building  property  could 
only  be  investigated  on  the  spot. 

Grace  had  her  own  ideas  as  to  what  lay  at  the 
bottom  of  this  increased  alacrity  to  go  west,  but 
she  held  her  peace. 

Mrs.  Courtly  was  to  take  them  to  the  theatre 
that  night,  and  to  return  to  Brackly  the  following 
day.  Mordaunt  declared  that  the  chief  attraction 
of  Boston  for  him  would  then  be  gone,  and  he  pro- 
posed to  start  for  Chicago  the  same  morning. 

Will  either  of  the  three  ever  forget  that  even- 
ing, when  they  witnessed  Jefferson's  performance 
in  "The  Heir  at  Law  " ?  It  will  always  live  as  an 
epoch  in  their  dramatic  experiences.  His  "Rip 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  303 

Van  Winkle  "  is  not  a  greater  triumph,  though  in 
a  different  line  ;  for  the  exquisite  naturalness  of 
this  fine  artist  transforms  an  artificial  and  farcical 
impossibility  into  an  eccentric  character  of  flesh 
and  blood,  in  which  he  persuades  us  to  believe  so 
implicitly  that  we  should  never  be  surprised  to 
meet  Dr.  Pangloss  walking  down  Beacon  Street 
or  Piccadilly.  What  a  lesson  to  actors  is  here  ! 
The  rigid  fidelity  to  nature — the  nature  of  in- 
tonation, expression,  and  gesture — never  allowing 
the  laughter  of  the  "groundlings"  to  seduce  him 
into  exaggeration  of  any  kind — this  has  its  reward 
in  our  frank  acceptance  of,  nay,  our  sympathy 
with,  a  very  unreal  personage.  Played  by  an  in- 
ferior actor,  I  can  imagine  nothing  more  tedious 
than  Dr.  Pangloss  would  be,  with  his  endless  quota- 
tions, his  facile  venality,  his  outrageous  wig.  What 
seemed  funny  to  our  grandfathers  does  not  amuse 
us  very  much.  It  needs  the  genius  of  a  Jefferson 
to  vivify  the  dry  bones  of  an  antiquated  farce. 

They  all  bade  Mrs.  Courtly  good-by  with  real 
regret. 

"  We  must  meet  in  Bayreuth  next  year,"  she 
said.  "  Will  you  give  me  a  rendezvous  for  the 
end  of  July  ?" 

"No,"  said  Mrs.  Frampton,  decidedly,  before 
Grace  could  speak.  "  Before  that,  in  my  house 
in  London.  Make  it  your  hotel,  when  you  pass 


304  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

through,  for  as  long  as  you  can.  Write  or  cable 
that  you  are  coming ;  that  is  all  that  is  neces- 
sary." 

Grace  had  not  felt  so  depressed  since  she  landed 
in  America  as  she  did  during  that  journey  to 
Chicago.  It  was  in  vain  she  said  to  herself,  over 
and  over  again,  that  nothing  which  her  aunt  or 
Mordaunt,  or,  least  of  all,  Lady  Clydesdale,  had 
said  concerning  Ivor  Lawrence,  had  the  smallest 
effect  on  her.  In  one  sense,  it  had  not — she  never 
doubted  him.  But  the  apprehension  of  an  over- 
whelming trouble  to  him — a  cloud,  from  which 
it  might  prove  impossible  to  clear  himself — had 
visibly  strengthened  in  her  mind.  It  was  useless 
to  argue  against  it ;  she  could  not  shake  off  this 
cold,  sickening  dread  which  swept  in  gusts  over 
her.  With  her  usual  bravery  she  concealed  her 
feelings  ;  but,  the  call  for  social  exertion  being 
now  over,  there  were  long  spaces  of  silence  and 
solitude  on  the  journey,  when,  with  a  book  in  her 
hand,  she  could  brood  over  this  trouble,  unsus- 
pected by  her  two  companions. 

The  route  chosen  was  by  Philadelphia.  They 
did  not  stop  at  New  York,  but  travelled  straight 
through  at  night,  arriving  at  their  destination 
early  in  the  morning.  Here  they  halted  the  re- 
mainder of  the  day,  and  visited  "Independence 
Hall,"  where  the  Declaration  was  signed,  and 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  305 

where  the  room  and  its  furniture  remain  much 
as  they  were  on  that  famous  day  when  the  heat 
was  so  great  and  the  flies  so  irritating  that  as 
the  assembled  gentlemen  flicked  their  silk  hand- 
kerchiefs and  wiped  their  brows  the  voting  is 
said  to  have  been  hurried  through,  and  some 
members  not  even  waited  for.  Yet  the  minority 
against  the  Declaration  was  a  considerable  one. 
As  Mordaunt  said  to  the  amiable  gentleman  who 
acted  as  their  guide, 

"  Who  knows  how  a  cold  day  and  a  full  hall 
might  have  changed  the  destinies  of  this  con- 
tinent, eh  ?" 

The  amiable  gentleman,  being  a  stanch  patriot, 
looked  confounded.  Then,  after  they  had  been 
shown  several  pastels  of  the  chief  voters  and 
orators  of  that  stirring  time,  and  had  examined 
the  building,  which  is  like  many  a  Georgian  man- 
sion in  the  English  counties,  and  was  built  of  red 
bricks  brought  from  England,  they  were  driven 
through  some  portion  of  the  largest  and  most 
beautiful  city  park  in  the  world.  It  extends 
over  three  thousand  acres  of  hill  and  dale,  wood 
and  winding  river,  untortured  by  man.  Happily, 
to  use  the  guide-book's  language,  "  Art  has  as  yet 
done  little  for  it."  May  it  never  do  more.  It  is 
a  beautiful  spot,  and  Philadelphia  may  be  proud 
in  the  possession  of  so  unique  a  playground. 
20 


306  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

But  what  of  its  streets  ?  Mrs.  Frampton  was 
greatly  disconcerted  by  being  nearly  jolted  off 
her  seat  as  she  drove  along. 

"  Did  you  ever  see  anything  like  it  ?"  she  cried. 
"  I  thought  New  York  and  Boston  bad  enough — 
but  this  !  How  can  the  people  who  live  in  thos,e 
nice  little  red  houses,  picked  out  with  white  mar- 
ble, and  marble  steps  so  beautifully  clean — " 

"  Stoops.  You  must  call  them  '  stoops,'  aunt," 
said  Mordaunt. 

"  Stoups?  I  never  heard  of  a  stoup  of  anything 
but  Burgundy — in  Scott's  novels.  But  never 
mind.  I  say,  how  can  people  living  in  houses 
that  are  like  Dutch  toys,  so  spick  and  span,  tol- 
erate such  roadways  ?  Really,  these  Americans 
are  an  incomprehensible  people  !" 

"No,  not  incomprehensible,"  said  her  nephew. 
"Ask  any  fellow  here.  He'll  explain  it  fast 
enough.  All  public  works  are  jobberies.  If  the 
streets  were  freshly  paved  to-morrow,  in  all  these 
cities,  it  would  be  so  badly  done — so  much  money 
would  be  made  out  of  them — that  they  would  be 
as  bad  as  ever  next  year." 

"  Abominable  !"  said  Mrs.  Frampton,  with  en- 
ergy. 

"  Besides  that,"  he  continued,  "  this  particular 
city  is  regarded  by  most  Americans — especially 
New-Yorkers — as  a  'Sleepy  Hollow.'  Miss  Pie, 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  307 

who  is  a  Philadelphia?!,  told  me  she  had  been 
puzzled  to  see  herself  spoken  of  in  some  paper  as 
the  only  female  citizen  who  suffered  from  insom- 
nia. Then  she  remembered  the  vile  aspersion, 
which  of  course  she  denied.  She  was  awfully 
good  fun,  that  little  woman.  She  gave  me  the 
idea  of  a  middle-aged  Puck,  eh?  Puck  was  a 
sexless  sort  of  a  being,  I  fancy." 

The  Stratford  Hotel,  where  they  stayed  one 
night,  met  with  great  favor  at  Mrs.  Frampton's 
hands  ;  and  so  did  the  Auditorium,  at  Chicago, 
in  contradistinction  to  others,  on  the  road,  which 
shall  be  nameless.  The  manner  of  serving  every 
meal  in  the  public  room  of  these  latter  hostelries, 
all  the  dishes  being  pitched  simultaneously  in  a 
semicircle  of  saucers  round  the  consumer,  was 
exasperating. 

"  Pray,  do  you  expect  me  to  devour  fish,  pud- 
ding, entrees,  meat,  and  all  those  unknown  vege- 
tables at  one  and  the  same  time  ?  Why  on  earth 
can't  you  bring  them  separately  ?"  she  demanded 
of  the  astonished  negro  waiter. 

Then  the  inevitable  pitcher  of  ice-water  which 
came  up  each  time  she  rang  her  bell  was  an- 
other offence.  She  marvelled  greatly  as  she 
looked  down  the  long  crowded  dining-room,  and 
saw  only  this  same  ice-water  or  tea  being  drunk 
at  dinner  by  stalwart  men.  Any  delusions,  how- 


308  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

ever,  which  she  might  have  had  as  to  their  "  total 
abstinence  "  were  soon  dispelled.  Whenever  she 
passed  through  the  public  hall,  she  saw  some  of 
these  men  at  the  bar  ;  they  were  not  then  drink- 
ing tea  or  ice-water. 

The  party  stayed  three  days  at  Chicago,  and 
were  duly  impressed  with  its  vastness,  the  mas- 
siveness  of  the  business  portion  of  the  city,  the 
length  and  extraordinary  diversity  of  architect- 
ure of  its  boulevards.  Some  of  the  least  pre- 
tentious houses,  and  notably  those  by  Richard- 
son, were  good,  and  gave  a  pleasant  impression 
of  happy  home  life,  without  ostentation.  But 
many  appeared  to  have  been  built  regardless  of 
any  known  principle,  save  that  of  endeavoring  to 
out-do  your  neighbor.  The  classic  and  Gothic 
styles  here  take  hands,  and  might  almost  be  said 
to  dance  a  cancan  together,  as  they  assuredly 
have  never  been  seen  to  do  before.  These  jokes 
in  stone  and  marble  of  every  hue  are  like  a 
child's  design  for  a  palace,  striking  up  spikes  into 
the  sky,  and  jumbling  together  turrets  and  pil- 
lars, porticoes  and  machicolated  walls,  in  a  fash- 
ion which  Mordaunt  declared  entitled  it  to  be 
called  "  the  Porcine,  or  Bristle-on-end "  style  of 
architecture. 

Of  course  he  went  to  witness  the  assassination 
of  the  hogs,  and,  watch  in  hand,  counted  sixteen 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  309 

despatched  in  one  minute,  while  the  ladies  spent 
the  morning  at  the  Art  Museum,  and  found,  with 
wonder  and  delight,  many  of  the  gems  of  the 
Demidoff  Collection,  which  they  remembered  in 
the  Villa  San  Donato,  at  Florence.  It  seemed  a 
curious  illustration  of  the  Chicago  mind,  munifi- 
cent of  everything  but  its  time,  and  jealous  for 
the  city's  reputation,  that,  while  willing  to  ex- 
pend large  sums  on  such  acquisitions  as  these, 
it  had  not  leisure  to  arrange  and  exhibit  them 
properly.  Mrs.  Frampton  observed  to  a  wealthy 
and  acute  citizen,  to  whom  she  brought  a  letter, 
that  it  was  a  pity  such  treasures  were  not  seen  to 
more  advantage.  His  reply  was  characteristic : 

"  Well,  you  see,  we  business  men  are  making 
money  all  the  time.  It  is  a  race  in  which  one  is 
very  soon  left  out  of  the  running.  If  I  go  to 
Europe  for  three  months  I  have  to  look  pretty 
sharp  to  keep  my  place,  I  can  tell  you,  when  I 
return.  Time  enough  to  build  galleries  and  all 
that  by  and  by." 

This  reminded  Grace  of  a  saying  of  Mr.  Laf- 
fan's,  "You  must  make  the  man  before  you  can 
make  the  statue." 

Mordaunt  dined  out  each  night,  and  was  inter- 
ested in  meeting  several  of  the  shrewd  business 
men  who  had  amassed  huge  fortunes.  He  was 
almost  tempted  to  invest  in  grain,  live-stock,  or 


310  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

lumber,  but  Mrs.  Frampton,  with  a  hand  of  iron, 
restrained  him. 

"Are  you  going  to  spend  your  life  here?"  she 
asked.  "  These  men  do,  and  know  what  they  are 
about.  From  their  cradle  they  have  heard  noth- 
ing but  money  talked  of.  They  are  born  'cute 
men  of  business.  What  do  you  think  that  pretty 
child  of  five,  in  the  hotel,  said  to  me  yesterday, 
when  I  asked  him. what  he  meant  to  be  when  he 
grew  up  ? — '  I  guess  I'll  keep  a  store !'  I  expect- 
ed him  to  say, '  I  mean  to  be  the  President,'  or  a 
general,  or  something.  But  no,  he  would  'keep 
a  store !'  There  you  are.  How  can  you  compete 
with  such  people  ?  No.  Invest  in  something 
that  doesn't  require  your  constant  personal  super- 
vision, or  else  leave  it  alone." 

On  one  of  these  evenings  there  was  a  dance,  to 
which  all  were  bidden,  but  only  Mordaunt  went. 
The  next  morning  he  described  how  he  had  met 
a  charming  family,  who  all  spoke  of  their  "fac- 
tory," which,  on  inquiry,  he  learned  was  one  of 
coffins  !  They  referred  in  the  most  natural  way 
to  their  industry  —  the  father  mentioning  the 
"boom"  thei'e  had  been  in  his  trade  not  long 
since,  owing  to  the  influenza ;  the  son  informing 
Mordaunt  that  he  had  charge  of  the  brass -nail 
and  plate  department ;  the  daughter,  that  she 
designed  the  embroidery  for  the  palls.  This 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  311 

cheerful  conversation  took  place  in  the  intervals 
of  the  merry  dance  and  at  the  convivial  supper- 
table. 

"They  were  awfully  nice,"  added  Mordaunt, 
"  but  it  sent  cold  water  down  my  back  to  hear 
them  talk.  It  sounded  like  ghouls,  fattening  on 
graves."  Then  he  told  them  of  an  old  man  he 
had  met,  who  came  from  a  neighboring  city, 
where  he  had  amassed  a  vast  fortune,  and  lived 
in  great  loneliness,  his  wife  and  children  electing 
to  reside  in  Europe.  Why  he  had  been  weak 
enough  originally  to  give  in  to  this  arrangement 
was  unexplained ;  but  there  was  something  at  once 
humorous  and  pathetic  in  the  monody  of  gratified 
vanity  and  personal  loneliness  with  which  he  fa- 
vored the  Englishman. 

"I  give  you  my  word,  I  didn't  know  whether 
to  congratulate  or  to  condole  with  him,"  said 
Mordaunt,  "  when  he  told  me  that  his  only 
daughter  was  married  to  a  French  count,  and 
that  he  should  never  see  her  again  now — never  ! 
The  tears  trickled  down  his  thin  cheeks,  as  he 
said  that  she  had  forgotten  all  about  her  old 
home — her  old  father.  But,  in  the  midst  of  his 
trouble,  he  recovered  himself.  There  was  balm 
in  Gilead  yet.  '  You  know,  sir,  the  family  dates 
back  to  Charlemagne  T  So  it  is  for  this  that 
such  devoted  parents  are  content  to  toil  and 


312  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

moil  all  their  lives  !  By  the  Lord  Harry  !  Self- 
sacrifice  takes  very  funny  forms  sometimes  !" 

And  Aunt  Su  fully  agreed  with  him. 

Having  heard  from  Mrs.  Caldwell  that  she 
awaited  their  arrival,  they  started  for  Denver  on 
the  fourth  morning,  between  which  city  and 
Colorado  Springs  her  home  was  situated.  Two 
days  and  nights'  travelling  rather  tried  Mrs. 
Frampton's  patience  and  powers  of  endurance, 
but  the  air,  which  grew  keener  and  more  elastic 
during  the  last  twelve  hours,  as  they  left  the 
plain  and  its  vapors  and  damp  mists,  and  as- 
cended the  high  table-land,  surrounded  by  snowy 
mountains,  invigorated  all  the  party.  Mordatint 
declared  his  aunt  was  the  youngest  of  the  trio 
when  they  alighted  at  the  station,  where  Mrs. 
Cald well's  carriage  awaited  them.  The  beauty 
and  strangeness  of  the  scene — as  they  drove  up 
a  winding  road,  between  rugged  peaks  of  sand- 
stone, some  nearly  blood-red,  others  milk-white, 
others  again  like  amethyst,  projected  against 
the  clear  blue  sky,  and  simulating  the  pinna- 
cles, turrets,  and  spires  of  a  castellated  city 
— recalled  the  wild  creations  of  Gustave  Dore\ 
It  seemed  too  fantastic  to  be  real.  The  very 
pine-trees  looked  tormented,  springing  from 
clefts  in  the  rock,  some  erect,  some  twisted  by 
the  winds,  but  all  with  arms  flung  out  over  wide- 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  313 

mouthed  chasms,  where  the  eagles  had  their 
nests.  The  house  stood  high  up  on  a  shelf  of 
rock,  protected  from  the  north  and  east  winds, 
but  open  to  the  south.  A  slope  of  terraced 
garden  lay  below  it,  ending  in  a  brook,  which 
fell,  with  the  noise  of  tumbling  waters,  down  a 
canon  at  the  back  of  the  house.  The  "  Falcon's 
Nest,"  as  it  was  called,  built  by  the  late  Mr. 
Caldwell,  was  of  wood,  unpretentious,  and  in 
perfect  taste,  for  its  position,  and  the  lives  its 
inhabitants  were  meant  to,  and  did  actually,  live. 
Labor  and  repose  for  some  ;  comfort  and  hospi- 
tality for  all  who  entered  its  broad  portals,  and 
found  a  pleasantly  diffused  but  not  oppressive 
warmth  reigning  through  the  suite  of  rooms  pan- 
elled with  pine,  where  plenty  of  books,  sofas,  and 
rocking-chairs  invited  the  inmates  to  rest  and  be 
thankful. 

Mrs.  Caldwell  and  Doreen  met  their  guests  in 
the  hall,  to  which  the  horns  of  buffalo  and  elk 
and  some  magnificent  bear-skins  lent  a  pleasant 
touch  of  savagery.  Pierce  Caldwell  was  at  his 
office,  and  would  not  return  till  the  evening. 
Alan  Brown  and  another  young  man  staying 
there  were  gone  to  skate,  and  after  luncheon, 
Mordaunt,  under  Doreen's  guidance,  set  off  in  a 
sleigh  to  join  them.  It  was  very  cold,  that  still, 
dry  cold  of  which  one  does  not  realize  the  inten- 


314  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

sity  until  one  consults  the  thermometer ;  but  here, 
with  a  blazing  wood  fire  to  warm  one  spiritually, 
and  hot-water  pipes  to  perform  the  work  practical- 
ly, Mrs.  Frampton  declared  the  temperature  was 
delightful ;  and  her  critical  nature  was  pleased 
with  her  hostess's  manner. 

"  That  is  a  nice  woman,"  she  said  to  her  niece, 
when  they  were  alone,  later  in  the  day.  "  She 
doesn't  '  protest  too  much.'  She  is  sensible,  well- 
bred,  and  knows  just  how  much  to  say,  and  what 
to  leave  unsaid.  All  Americans  have  not  that 
tact." 

"  Nor  all  English  people  either.  I  like  that 
little  Doreen  so  much  —  she  is  a  sweet  little 
thing ;  and  the  son — I  am  sure  you  will  fall  in 
love  with  the  son,  aunt." 

Mrs.  Frampton's  unspoken  reply  was,  "  I  al- 
most wish  you  would.  Not  seriously,  of  course, 
but  just  to  distract  your  thoughts." 

Pierce  Caldwell  returned  at  dusk,  and  found 
the  ladies  at  tea.  His  frank  charm  of  manner, 
even  more  than  his  good  looks,  won  Mrs.  Framp- 
ton at  once  ;  and  knowing  how  energetic  he  was 
in  the  work  he  was  carrying  on,  she  began  ques- 
tioning him  about  it.  Her  capacity  for  taking  a 
vivid  interest  in  the  details  of  other  people's  af- 
fairs always  distinguished  her.  It  is  not  a  com- 
mon gift,  that  power  of  throwing  one's  self  heart- 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  315 

ily  into  matters  that  do  not  personally  concern 
one. 

"  Your  mother  tells  me  you  have  had  a  hard 
fight  with  your  mine,  Mr.  Caldwell ;  but  you 
have  triumphed  over  all  your  difficulties?" 

"  Oh  !  mother  exaggerates  the  difficulties.  It 
only  wanted  a  little  patience.  The  mine  when 
father  died,  you  see,  was  a  mere  prospect.  I 
had  to  develop  it.  It  turned  out  much  better 
than  even  father  ever  expected,  but  I  had  to  go 
on  with  the  exploration  for  two  years  before  I 
thought  it  prudent  to  erect  a  mill." 

"  Well  ?  And  now,"  she  continued,  with  eager- 
ness, "  it  is  proving  a  great  success  ?  Everything 
has  prospered  with  you  ?" 

"  Yes,"  he  said,  quietly.  "  Everything,  up  to 
the  present,  has  prospered,  I  am  glad  to  say.  I 
am  now  going  to  turn  it  into  a  company.  We 
have  to  erect  other  works,  and  it  is  too  great 
an  undertaking  for  one  man,  alone.  Of  course 
I  shall  retain  a  very  large  interest  in,  and  the 
chief  management  of,  the  company,  but  I  can't 
work  it  all  by  myself." 

"  Humph !"  said  Mrs.  Frampton,  reflectively. 
"  I  suppose  you  want  to  get  away  occasionally, 
and  amuse  yourself  in  New  York,  like  other 
young  men  of  your  age  ?" 

"  Well,  no  ;  I  do  go  away,  now  and  again,  when 


316  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

business  takes  me  to  New  York  or  Washington, 
but  I  don't  stay  much  longer  than  I  can  help.  I 
always  feel  as  if  things  couldn't  get  on  without 
me  at  the  mine,  and  I  love  this  place.  I  believe 
I  am  never  so  happy  anywhere  as  here." 

The  skaters,  with  Mordaunt  and  Doreen,  now 
entered.  Alan  Brown  did  not  look  happy.  Do- 
reen had  driven  the  Englishman  in  her  sleigh  to 
and  from  the  skating-grounds ;  and  Alan's  pro- 
clivities for  all  that  was  English  did  not  extend  to 
a  baronet, six  feet  high,  who  was  notorious  as  a  flirt, 
and  who  seemed  inclined  to  try  his  hand,  just  to 
keep  it  in,  upon  the  object  of  the  young  American's 
affections.  In  this  he  was  quite  mistaken ;  Mor- 
daunt had  the  same  manner  with  every  woman 
under  —  and  some  over; — fifty,  which  accounted 
for  his  being  so  popular.  The  unsophisticated 
Doreen  thought  him  charming,  and  he  was  quite 
willing  to  be  thought  so.  It  gave  him  but  little 
trouble  to  be  nice  to  this  bread-and-butter  miss, 
whom  he  found  really  not  so  dull  as  he  had  antic- 
ipated. Alan  only  saw  the  effect,  however — the 
young  girl's  increased  animation  and  volubility, 
and  he  was  proportionately  depressed. 

The  other  man,  Bloxsome  by  name,  was  a  Cali- 
fornian.  He  was  not  attractive,  either  in  appear- 
ance or  manner,  to  our  friends,  and,  as  he  only 
stayed  one  day  at  the  "  Falcon's  Nest,"  it  would 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCO VEEY  317 

be  unnecessary,  but  for  subsequent  events,  to 
name  him  here.  How  did  he  come  to  be  a  friend 
of  the  family  ?  His  manner  and  the  tone  of  his 
mind  contrasted  so  strongly  with  Pierce  Cald- 
well's  that  it  was  difficult  to  account  for  their 
apparent  intimacy.  He  was  coarse  and  loud,  with 
a  grating  voice  and  accent,  and  his  "  spi'ead-eagle- 
ism  "  was  especially  offensive  to  Mordaunt.  To 
the  ladies  this  was  simply  amusing.  They  did 
not  in  the  least  object  to  his  thinking  everything 
in  his  own  country,  beginning  with  himself,  nobler, 
greater,  and  better  than  the  rest  of  the  universe. 
It  was  a  failing  with  which  they  were  not  wholly 
unacquainted  in  England.  But  foibles,  which  may 
be  pardoned  when  allied  with  good  manners,  are 
more  trying  when  accentuated  with  ill-breeding. 

He  sat  on  one  side  of  Grace  at  dinner  that  first 
evening,  and  in  the  course  of  it — apparently  acci- 
dentally— Miss  Planter's  name  was  mentioned. 
When  Grace  thought  afterwards  over  what  had 
passed,  she  felt  sure  that  the  accident  was  only 
apparent.  Mr.  Bloxsome  had  adroitly  led  the 
conversation  up  to  the  point  when  Grace's  hand 
was  forced,  so  to  speak,  and  the  "belle's"  name 
dropped  from  her.  He  seized  it. 

"  Clare  Planter  ?  Why,  I  know  her  quite  well. 
I  heard  your  brother  was  vurry  intimate  with  her. 
Is  that  so  ?" 


318  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  My  brother  and  I  stayed  at  a  country-house 
with  her.  That  is  the  way  of  becoming  intimate 
— if  people  like  each  other.  And  we  both  of  us 
like  Miss  Planter." 

"  I  reckon  that's  because  she  thinks  such  a  heap 
of  England  and  English  people." 

"  Not  entirely,"  replied  Grace,  coolly.  "  Of 
course  we  should  not  like  her  if  she  hated  us." 

"  We  find  her  ever  so  much  spoiled  since  she 
crossed  the  ocean." 

"Then  she  must  have  been  very  charming  be- 
fore." 

"  But  Mrs.  Planter  is  worse.  She  is  a  regular 
Anglomaniac.  Won't  call  on  any  one  in  Pitts- 
burgh now,  I'm  told.  They  are  coming  to  Frisco 
in  quite  a  few  days.  I  guess  you  know  that?" 

"They  spoke  of  the  likelihood  of  going  to 
California." 

"  Sir  Mordaunt  knows  it  is  more  than  a  '  like- 
lihood,' I  reckon.  He  will  find  Mr.  Planter  a  stiff 
customer — not  ready  to  come  down  with  the  oof, 
and  not  half  as  rich  as  he  is  supposed  to  be.  Your 
brother  is  hunting  around,  I  hear,  for  an  Amuri- 
can  heiress?  Wull,  you  can  just  tell  him  this — 
no  Amurican  girl  knows  how  rich  she  is  till  she 
can  say, '  Our  Father,  which  art  in  Heaven.' " 

Grace  looked  at  him  with  a  flashing  eye,  and 
there  was  ineffable  scorn  in  her  voice  as  she  said, 


A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  319 

"My  brother  is  not  a  fortune-hunter,  nor  did 
he  feel  impelled  to  ask  Miss  Planter  to  say  her 
prayers." 

Then  she  turned  and  addressed  Pierce  Cald- 
well  on  her  other  side. 

She  avoided  Mr.  Bloxsome  as  far  as  possible 
during  the  remainder  of  the  evening. 


CHAPTER   XX 

THE  next  day,  when  another  slight  fall  of  snow 
in  the  night  had  been  frozen  as  hard  as  the  sur- 
face of  a  wedding-cake  over  all  the  roads  in  the 
district,  Mordaunt  was  driven  by  Pierce  Caldwell 
in  his  sleigh  up  the  beautiful  drive  his  father  had 
made  along  the  mountain-side  to  the  mouth  of 
the  mine.  Here  he  passed  some  hours  in  exam- 
ining all  the  processes  of  silver-milling,  and  the 
many  improvements,  due  to  Pierce's  energy,  which 
had  been  effected  in  the  works  since  the  day  they 
were  established.  He  descended  the  mine  by  a 
new  shaft  opened  a  few  days  previously,  which 
had  been  sunk  several  hundred  feet,  and  which 
had  laid  bare  fresh  veins  of  ore,  richer,  apparent- 
ly, than  any  which  had  yet  been  worked.  Mor- 
daunt's  enthusiasm  rose  to  fever  pitch.  When 
he  had  returned  to  the  earth's  surface,  he 
gasped, 

"  By  Jove  !  Caldwell — this  is  the  biggest  thing 
out.  You're  a  lucky  chap  —  no  !  I  suppose  I 
oughtn't  to  say  that.  How  few  young  chaps 


A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY  321 

would  have  been  able  to  do  what  you  have  done  ! 
It  is  splendid — it  really  is !" 

"  Oh  !  it's  no  merit  of  mine.  I  have  done  noth- 
ing except  just  stick  to  the  business,  and  watch, 
and  let  nothing  slip.  It  is  desperately  interesting, 
I  can  tell  you.  And  then  the  boys — they're  a 
rough  lot,  but  such  good  fellows !  I'm  fond  of 
them  all,  and  they'd  go  to — well !  anywhere  for 
me,  I  believe.  This  is  the  reading-room  I've  built 
for  them." 

The  "  boys  "  were  men,  some  well  over  fifty, 
begrimed  with  dirt,  and  many,  it  must  be  con- 
fessed, of  forbidding  aspect.  The  stories  Mor- 
daunt  had  been  told  of  shots  fired  at  random  in 
saloons  and  drinking  bars  gained  in  probability 
as  he  looked  at  them.  Indeed,  Pierce  confirmed 
them  from  his  own  experiences  as  a  youth,  when 
he  remembered,  in  a  saloon,  having  to  throw  him- 
self flat  on  the  ground  "to  prevent  stopping  the 
balls,"  and  the  floor  was  strewn  subsequently  with 
wounded  men.  He  repeated  an  anecdote  of  lynch 
law  in  those  not-far-distant  days,  as  he  heard  it, 
in  the  words  of  the  narrator,  "  which,"  he  contin- 
ued with  a  laugh,  "  I  think  are  characteristically 
succinct.  The  fellow  was  telling  me  how  their 
camp  had  suffered  by  the  robbery  of  horses,  and 
he  added,  'But  I  tell  you,  sir,  that  we  collared 
a  man  the  other  day,  owning  a  horse  that  didn't 
21 


322  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

belong  to  him.  The  next  thing  that  man  found 
was  that  his  legs  were  not  touching  the  ground!" 

Mordaunt  laughed  heartily  at  this  graphic  eu- 
phemism, and  then  said, 

"I  suppose  they  are  getting  fast  civilized  now? 
All  the  Bret-Harteism  will  be  swept  away  before 
long— eh  ?" 

"  Why,  yes.  We  have  schools  now  everywhere, 
and  churches  and  institutes.  They  spring  up  like 
mushrooms." 

"But  who  builds  them?  All  along  the  track 
of  the  railway  I  saw  big  towns  growing  up.  It 
seems  little  short  of  miraculous  in  so  short  a 
time." 

"Well,"  said  the  young  man,  with  an  amused 
expression  on  his  handsome  face,  "  you  see,  it  is 
like  this.  There  is  a  contractor  who  undertakes 
to  build  for  each  municipality.  If  they  order  fifty 
houses,  he  throws  in  a  school ;  if  they  order  a  hun- 
dred, he  throws  in  a  church.  It  is  as  well  to  do 
the  thing  handsomely,  for  he  is  'cute  enough  to 
know  it  is  a  remunerative  advertisement." 

The  ladies  now  drove  up  in  a  char-d-banc  with 
the  other  two  men.  Alan  Brown,  having  had  the 
field  all  to  himself  for  some  hours,  looked  recon- 
ciled to  life,  though  he  would  have  preferred  life 
in  Piccadilly  with  Doreen  to  life  under  the  same 
conditions  in  the  Rocky  Mountains.  But  the 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  323 

young  girl  had  pacified  him,  I  presume,  as  to  the 
English  baronet,  and,  indeed,  Ballinger  showed 
himself  to  be  so  entirely  engrossed  in  the  ninety- 
stamp  dry-crushing  silver  mill,  that  there  was  no 
pretext  for  a  renewal  of  the  young  American's 
jealousy.  Mordaunt  found  an  opportunity  of 
whispering  to  his  aunt, 

"This  is  the  investment  for  me.  I'm  sure  I 
can't  do  better  than  get  all  the  shares  I  can  in  the 
new  company  that  is  being  formed." 

But  Mrs.  Frampton  demurred. 

"  Don't  be  in  a  hurry.  This  climate  is  really 
too  exciting  to  judge  of  anything  dispassionately. 
Wait  till  we  get  damper,  my  dear.  I  am  ready 
to  jump  out  of  my  skin."  Then,  to  Pierce,  who 
came  up  at  that  moment,  "Mr.  Caldwell,  how  do 
you  manage  to  exist,  with  your  nerves  in  the  con- 
stant state  of  tension  they  must  be  in  here  ?  When 
your  butler  handed  me  potatoes  last  night,  and 
touched  my  shoulder,  I  nearly  screamed,  he  gave 
me  such  a  shock.  And  I  find  I  send  out  blue 
sparks  every  time  I  turn  the  brass  handle  of  the 
door !  It  is  frightful !  I  am  become  one  vast 
electric  battery  !" 

"  You  would  no  doubt  be  able  to  light  the  gas 
with  your  fingers.  Some  people  have  more  elec- 
tricity than  others.  I  haven't  so  much,  and  get 
along  here  very  well.  And  this  dry  climate  has 


324  A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

its  advantages.  We  are  going  to  lunch  oil  the 
mountain-side,  if  you  are  not  afraid  ?" 

"  What !  In  the  snow  ?  To  be  sure,  the  sun  is 
very  hot,  and  there  is  no  cold  wind — " 

"Oh,  yes,  and  we  will  find  a  sheltered  place 
under  the  rocks.  My  mother  and  sister  always 
do  this  when  they  come  up  here  to  lunch  with 
me,  for  the  men's  saloon  and  reading-room  are 
not  odoriferous.  You  won't  find  it  cold,  alfresco, 
such  a  still  day  as  this." 

Nor  did  they.  Their  luncheon  spread  upon  the 
crisp  snow,  a  cloudless  sky  above  them,  the  sun 
pouring  down  on  the  little  amphitheatre  of  rocks 
in  which  Pierce  had  ensconced  the  ladies,  Mrs. 
Frampton  declared  it  was  an  ideal  midday  dining- 
room — a  combination  of  Davos-Platz  and  Cairo — 
which  left  nothing  to  be  desired. 

Bloxsome,  in  his  coarse,  loud  way,  was  amus- 
ing; but  the  instinctive  dislike  of  our  English 
friends  seemed  to  be  shared  by  Alan  Brown,  be- 
tween whom  and  the  elder  American  there  was 
a  constant  sparring.  Grace  confessed  to  herself 
that  the  youth's  Anglomania  must  be  trying  to  one 
of  his  countryman's  boastful  temper,  but  this  did 
not  excuse  the  bad  taste  of  Bloxsome's  rejoinders. 
When  Alan  described,  with  boyish  enthusiasm,  a 
driving  tour  he  had  taken  through  the  north  of 
England,  the  other  said, 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  325 

"Why  do  you  squirm  about  English  scenery 
so  much?  Say,  can  you  find  anything  in  all 
England  to  compare  with  this,  I  should  like  to 
know?  Talk  of  their  lakes — why,  they're  mere 
ponds  ;  and  their  rivers — ditches  beside  ours." 

"Size  isn't  everything,"  said  Alan,  scornfully. 
"  The  lovely  roadside  hedges — the  beautiful  roads 
themselves — then,  the  dear  old-fashioned  inns,  the 
ruined  abbeys,  the  historic  castles — what  have  we 
got  to  compare  with  them?  Travelling  here  is 
beastly.  No  wonder  Americans  travel  very  little 
in  their  own  country  for  pleasure." 

Bloxsome  gave  a  coarse  laugh.  "  No,  they 
transact  their  business  at  home,  and  go  abroad  for 
amusement.  English  people  amuse  themselves  at 
home,  and  come  here  to  invest  their  money  or 
pick  up  heiresses." 

Pierce  Caldwell  blushed,  and  cut  in  with  some 
wholly  irrelevant  remark,  talking  fast  and  laugh- 
ing, in  the  impotent  endeavor  to  obliterate  the 
effect  of  this  speech.  And  when  Mrs.  Caldwell 
found  herself  alone  with  Mrs.  Frampton  after- 
wards, she  took  occasion  to  say, 

"You  must  please  forgive  our  unmannerly 
cousin.  His  education  was  very  much  neglected. 
He  is  a  rough  diamond." 

Mrs.  Frampton  said,  incisively,  "  He  should  be 
cut." 


326  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

Mrs.  Caldwell,  not  choosing  to  understand  the 
Equivoque,  remarked  that  the  world  was  the  best 
lapidary  in  such  a  case  ;  and  John  Bloxsome  had 
seen  little  of  any  other  worlds  than  those  of  San 
Francisco  and  Pittsburgh. 

"His  father  was  one  of  my  husband's  greatest 
friends.  He  died  many  years  ago,  and  since  then 
John  comes  and  goes  as  he  likes  in  our  house.  I 
wish  I  could  give  him  better  manners,  poor  fel- 
low !" 

Mrs.  Frampton  pursed  her  lips,  but  made  no  re- 
joinder. She  felt  such  doubt  as  to  the  intrinsic 
value  of  the  diamond  that  silence  was  her  only 
refuge. 

Mordaunt,  in  the  meantime,  was  impelled  to  say 
to  Pierce, 

"That's  a  queer  fellow,  that  Bloxsome  !  Is  he 
always  like  that,  or  has  he  some  special  grudge 
against  us?" 

"  He  is  not  always  like  that.  I  can't  tell  what 
has  come  to  him.  I'm  afraid  the  truth  is  he  doesn't 
like  any  one  being  more  noticed  than  himself,  es- 
pecially an  Englishman." 

"  What  an  ass  !  Where  has  the  fellow  lived  all 
his  life  ?" 

"  Oh  !  In  a  very  narrow  circle.  Never  was 
at  a  public  school  or  at  college.  Now  he  lives 
chiefly  between  San  Francisco  and  Pittsburgh." 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  327 

Mordaunt  whistled.  "  Ho  !  bo  !  I  think  I  begin 
to  understand.  Is  he  well  off  ?" 

"  Fairly  so,  I  believe.  But  he  never  talks  to  me 
of  his  affairs.  I've  known  him  ever  since  I  can 
remember,  but,  to  say  the  truth,  we  have  not 
much  in  common." 

"  So  I  should  think.  I  like  that  young  Brown 
much  better,  though  he  scowled  at  me  awfully 
yesterday  ;  but,"  he  added,  laughing,  "I  think  to- 
day he  has  found  out  I  am  not  such  a  bad  chap 
after  all." 

No  more  was  said,  and  as  Bloxsome  departed 
the  next  morning  he  was  soon  forgotten  by 
our  friends.  Mordaunt  set  off  the  same  day  for 
his  old  brother-officer's  ranch,  not  more  than  a 
hundred  miles  distant,  whence  he  was  to  visit 
Pueblo,  leaving  his  aunt  and  sister  at  "  Falcon's 
Nest"  for  a  week. 

It  was  a  pleasant,  tranquil  one  to  the  small 
party,  reinforced  once  or  twice  by  visitors  from 
Denver  or  Colorado  Springs.  But  towards  the 
end  of  that  time,  Grace  watched  eagerly  for  the 
arrival  of  each  mail.  She  counted  the  days,  the 
chances  of  delays  and  accidents ;  it  was  just  pos- 
sible, during  the  three  weeks  which  had  elapsed 
since  she  wrote  to  Ivor  Lawrence,  for  an  answer 
to  have  reached  her.  But  none  came.  It  was 
true  she  had  given  him  no  address,  but  he  must 


328  A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

have  known  that  anything  sent  to  her  home  would 
be  forwarded.  His  name  was  never  mentioned 
between  her  aunt  and  herself,  and  she  had  so 
schooled  herself  as  not  to  betray  the  anxiety  she 
felt.  Mrs.  Frampton  was  of  course  ignorant  that 
her  niece  had  written  to  Lawrence,  and  did  not 
suspect  the  torture  of  "  hope  deferred "  which 
Grace  suffered. 

She  rambled  alone  up  the  canon  sometimes, 
when  she  could  slip  out  of  the  house  unperceived 
by  Doreen,  who  was  generally  her  companion ; 
and  sitting  down  there  among  the  rocks,  her  face 
dropped  its  mask,  and  her  heart  called  aloud  to 
the  one  man  on  earth  for  whom  she  felt  she  would 
make  any  sacrifice.  Yes,  though  "the  world" 
should  henceforward  eject  him  from  its  portals 
and  brand  him  with  infamy,  though  her  kindred 
should  refuse  to  receive  one  stained  with  so  deep 
a  dye,  she  would  not  hesitate  to  go  to  him,  to 
share  his  obloquy,  if  only  he  would  come  to  her 
with  open  arms  and  say,  "  You  have  believed  in 
me  hitherto ;  will  you  continue  to  believe  in  me, 
till  death  us  do  part  ?" 

It  was  strange  he  should  not  write.  Common 
coui'tesy  demanded  that  he  should  answer  her 
letter.  But  perhaps  he  was  waiting  to  do  so  till  he 
could  tell  her  the  result  of  the  trial.  She  rarely 
saw  an  English  newspaper.  Mordaunt  had  one 


A  VOYAGE   OF  DISCOVERY  329 

sent  him,  but  it  arrived  very  irregularly  ;  and, 
whether  intentionally  or  not,  he  generally  kept  it 
to  himself,  or  took  it  to  his  aunt's  room  to  discuss 
the  financial  article.  But  now  he  was  gone,  and 
his  papers  were  sent  after  him ;  and  any  chance 
of  learning  a  decision  in  the  law  courts  was  at  an 
end. 

He  wrote  from  his  friend's  ranch,  fairly  pleased 
with  the  life,  "  Charington  is  doing  very  well ; 
and  if  a  man  sets  himself,  body  and  soul,  to  work 
here,  on  this  gigantic  farming  scale,  he  may  make 
a  good  thing  of  it.  If  I  married,  and  gave  up 
English  politics,  and  was  content  to  lead  a  purely 
pastoral  life,  I  am  sure  I  could  make  it  answer. 
But  Charington  advises  me  strongly  not  to  invest 
money  in  a  ranch,  unless  I  am  prepared  to  devote 
myself  to  raising  cattle,  and  so  on.  It  is  an  aw- 
fully jolly  life  for  a  short  time — I  feel  as  fit  as 
a  four-year-old — but  I  fancy  it  would  pall  after  a 
bit." 

Then,  from  Pueblo,  a  few  days  later,  he  wrote, 
"'Real  estate'  in  Pueblo!  After  all,  that  I  be- 
lieve is  the  investment  that  is  the  most  absolutely 
certain  of  bringing  in  very  large  returns  ultimate- 
ly ;  for  mines  are  always  uncertain,  are  they  not? 
And  railways  fluctuate.  But  in  a  rising  city  like 
this,  land  must  increase  rapidly  in  value,  year  by 
year.  What  do  you  say  ?" 


330  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"  I  say,"  wrote  his  aunt  in  reply,  "  that  I  can't 
trust  my  own  judgment  here,  far  less  yours,  my 
dear  Mordaunt.  All  these  speculations  look  so 
lovely  on  the  spot  that  one  must  get  at  a  little 
distance  from  them  to  judge  if  they  stand  up- 
right and  are  as  solid  as  they  seem.  I  trust 
Pierce  Caldwell  implicitly — he  is  a  fine  fellow 
and  a  clever  fellow,  and  he  has  done  splendidly 
so  far.  But  he  is  young,  and  naturally  sanguine. 
Leave  his  mine  and  your  Pueblo  building  specu- 
lation alone  for  the  present.  There  can  be  no 
harm  in  a  few  weeks'  delay." 

And  this  advice  was  enforced  with  strong  ver- 
bal exhortation  when  her  nephew,  drifted  hither 
and  thither  by  the  contrary  winds  of  transient 
enthusiasm,  returned  to  the  bosom  of  his  family 
and  held  counsel  with  his  aunt.  But  such  coun- 
sel was  not  possible  on  the  night  of  his  arrival, 
which  was  coincident  with  the  unexpected  ap- 
pearance of  an  omnibusful  of  young  folks  from 
Colorado  Springs.  This  "  surprise  party  "  brought 
a  fiddler  with  them,  and  were  greeted  by  Mrs. 
Caldwell  with  a  cordiality  which  indicated  un- 
bounded confidence  in  the  resources  of  her  larder. 
Mrs.  Frampton  stood  aghast.  She  thought  with 
what  consternation  the  head  of  an  ordinary  house- 
hold in  England  would  view  the  inroad  of  a  dozen 
hungry  young  men  and  women,  prepared  to  make 


A   VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  331 

a  night  of  it,  and,  if  heavy  snow  should  prevent 
their  departure,  by  no  means  indisposed  to  pass 
two  or  three  under  their  friends'  hospitable  roof  ! 
Happily,  in  this  case,  the  snow  did  not  descend 
till  they  were  gone,  when  it  effectually  blocked 
the  mountain  roads  and  the  railways,  delaying  the 
Ballingers'  departure  two  days.  But  this  night, 
though  dark  and  windy,  was  fine,  and  the  heavily 
laden  omnibus  with  its  four  horses  performed 
the  journey  to  and  fro  in  safety,  depositing  its 
hilarious  freight  at  their  respective  homes  in  the 
dawn  of  the  winter  morning. 

To  the  elder  Englishwoman,  accustomed  to  the 
undemonstrative  enjoyment  of  her  own  country- 
folk, the  boisterous  high  spirits  of  these  young 
people,  under  no  conventional  restraints  but  those 
of  propriety,  were  a  revelation.  "Could  they 
really  all  be  as  much  amused  as  that  ?"  she  asked. 
"And  was  it  necessary  to  make  such  a  noise 
about  it  ?"  Grace  declared  that  a  pleasuring  in 
the  days  of  Queen  Bess  might  have  been  in  this 
wise,  but  not  later,  in  England ;  not  when  the 
corrupt  manners  of  the  Stuarts,  and  the  buckram 
and  whalebones  of  the  House  of  Hanover  had  ren- 
dered impossible  all  frank  demonstrations  of  joy- 
ousness  among  persons  "  of  quality."  With  what 
shouts  of  laughter  these  young  Americans  arrived ! 
With  what  security  they  claimed  their  welcome  ! 


3.32  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

Did  ever  the  finest  stroke  of  art  arouse  such  tem- 
pests of  hilarity  as  did  this  small  and  well-worn 
joke  of  the  "  surprise  "  ?  They  danced  with  the 
vigor  of  Highlanders  at  a  Northern  meeting. 
Mordaunt,  of  course,  led  out  all  the  girls  in  turn, 
and,  Grace,  though  with  no  heart  for  capering,  if 
the  truth  had  been  known,  waltzed  Avith  most  of 
the  young  men. 

For  this  act  of  self-sacrifice,  let  us  think,  she 
had  her  reward,  when,  on  the  arrival  of  the  mail, 
a  few  hours  before  the  Ballingers  were  to  leave 
the  "  Falcon's  Nest,"  a  thick  packet  was  placed 
in  her  hand. 

How  she  blessed  that  forty-eight  hours'  deten- 
tion by  the  fall  of  snow  !  But  for  it  she  would 
not  have  received  this  letter,  which  had  been  al- 
ready delayed,  in  transit,  for  many  days.  She 
hurried  to  her  room  and  tore  it  open.  It  was  a 
long  document,  extending  over  many  pages,  and 
this  is  what  she  read : 


CHAPTER   XXI 

"KING'S  BENCH  WALK,  February  28th. 

"My  DEAR  Miss  BALLINGER,— I  thank  you  heartily  for 
your  letter.  It  has  brought  the  only  great  pleasure  I 
have  had  for  months.  This  has  been  a  miserable  time, 
but  I  hope  and  believe  it  is  nearly  over.  Your  letter  is 
the  first  ray  of  pure  light  that  has  reached  me  ;  I  hail  it 
as  the  dawn  succeeding  the  black  clouds  that  have  over- 
shadowed me  and  hidden  you  from  my  sight.  You  will 
say  the  dawn  might  have  broken  sooner ;  that  I  have  wil- 
fully deprived  myself  of  that  light,  which,  had  I  looked, 
I  should  have  seen  on  the  horizon.  That  is  true  ;  and 
you  who  know  me  so  well— better  than  any  one,  I  believe 
— know  my  answer.  I  was  too  proud  to  go  to  you  while 
this  matter  was  pending,  too  sensitive  as  to  what  the  world 
might  say  (and  in  that  word  I  include  your  nearest  rela- 
tions) to  appeal  to  you,  to  enlist  your  sympathy,  to  do 
aught  which  should  force  you  into  the  position  of  my 
partisan.  You  have  written,  and  my  conscience  is  now 
clear  in  answering  you.  If  I  do  so  at  some  length,  telling 
you  my  '  plain,  unvarnished  tale,'  though  it  would  seem 
tedious  to  many,  I  do  not  fear  its  seeming  so  to  you. 

"  You  have  known  me  only  as  a  poor,  a  very  poor,  man, 
struggling  to  make  his  livelihood,  without  .influence,  with- 
out prospects.  My  eccentric  bachelor  uncle,  Mr.  Tracy, 
my  mother's  brother,  never  gave  me  anything  beyond  a 
ten-pound  note  at  Christmas.  For  many  years  I  had  every 


334  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

reason  to  believe  that  he  rather  disliked  me  than  other- 
wise. I  never  sought  him ;  I  had  certainly  no  expecta- 
tion of  his  leaving  me  more  than,  possibly,  a  small  legacy. 
His  other  nephew,  my  first  cousin,  Giles  Tracy,  was  gen- 
erally regarded  as  his  heir ;  and  but  for  his  conduct  I 
have  no  doubt  he  would  have  continued  to  be  so,  as  he 
unquestionably  was  a  few  years  since. 

"It  is  just  five  winters  ago  that  I  received  what  I 
should  call  a  peremptory  request,  rather  than  an  invita- 
tion, to  go  down  to  my  uncle  at  once.  I  obeyed  the  man- 
date, and  found  him  in  a  state  of  great  exasperation.  His 
solicitor,  Mr.  Eagles,  was  with  him,  and  remained  in  the 
room  all  the  time  I  was  there.  I  little  thought  of  what 
importance  his  presence  might  prove  to  me  hereafter  ! 
Giles  Tracy  had  been  gambling,  and  had  lost  heavily  at 
Monte  Carlo.  He  had  not  ventured  to  apply  to  his  uncle 
to  pay  his  debts,  knowing,  in  the  first  place,  that  he  would 
be  refused,  and,  secondly,  that  his  prospects  for  the  future 
might  be  seriously  impaired  with  the  crotchety  old  man. 
But  a  rumor  had  reached  Mr.  Tracy's  ears,  by  some  means 
or  other— I  never  discovered  how — that  Giles  had  been  to 
the  Jews,  and  had  borrowed  largely  at  usurious  interest, 
giving  promissory  notes,  payable  when  he  should  inherit 
his  uncle's  fortune.  It  was  to  discover  the  truth  in  this 
matter  that  he  sent  for  me.  He  expected  me  to  ferret  out 
the  facts  and  report  them  to  him.  I  refused  to  do  so.  He 
then  got  very  angry,  and  said  he  would  leave  all  his  money 
to  a  hospital.  I  said  he  could  do  what  he  liked  with  his 
money — it  was  no  business  of  mine — but  he  must  take 
some  other  means  of  learning  the  nature  of  my  cousin's 
monetary  transactions.  Giles  and  I  had  never  been  cordial 
friends,  but  I  was  not  going  to  play  the  part  of  a  detective 


A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  335 

towards  him.  And  with  that,  as  my  uncle  now  turned  the 
vials  of  his  wrath  upon  me,  I  left  Mr.  Tracy's  house.  I 
did  not  see  him  again  for  some  time,  but  I  have  reason 
to  believe  that  this — which  was  the  only  conduct  any  hon- 
orable man  could  pursue  under  the  circumstances— far 
from  alienating  my  uncle,  was  the  real  cause  of  his  con- 
ceiving more  regard  for  me.  It  was  then  he  made  the 
only  other  will  that  has  been  found,  wherein  he  divided 
his  property  between  me  and  my  cousin.  I  had  from  him, 
in  the  course  of  the  following  summer,  a  note  begging  me 
to  go  to  Tracy  Manor ;  and  during  the  last  three  years  of 
his  life  I  paid  him  several  flying  visits.  Giles's  name  was 
rarely  mentioned  on  these  occasions ;  but  he  said  once, 
looking  at  me  in  a  marked  manner,  'I  have  discovered 
all  I  wanted  about  that  scamp,  without  your  intervention.' 
What  he  had  learned  concerning  him  I  know  not,  but  that 
he  did  learn  something,  very  much  to  my  cousin's  disad- 
vantage, subsequently  to  the  occasion  I  have  named,  is  cer- 
tain, and  will,  I  fear,  come  out  at  the  trial. 

"  I  often  found  Mr.  Eagles  with  my  uncle,  and  one  day, 
about  two  years  before  he  died,  he  said  to  me,  in  Mr.  Ea- 
gles's  presence,  '  I  have  cut  Giles  out  of  my  will  entirely, 
and  have  left  all  my  money,  as  I  told  you  I  should,  to  a 
hospital.'  I  remember  his  looking  at  me  very  searchingly, 
as  though  he  wished  to  see  what  impression  his  words 
made  on  me,  and  I  remember  also,  distinctly,  my  reply  : 
'  That  is  too  cruel  a  punishment  for  the  folly  of  youth.' 
'  "Folly  "  ?'  cried  my  uncle.  ' Do  you  call  that  folly,  sir  ? 
•  I  tell  you  he  is  a  scoundrel !'  If  Eagles  is  forthcoming 
at  the  trial,  he  will  remember  that  scene  as  well  as  the 
former  one ;  he  will  recall  my  words  and  my  uncle's. 

"  On  my  next  visit  to  Tracy  Manor,  I  heard  incidentally 


336  A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

that  Eagles's  health  had  broken  down,  and  that  he  had  gone 
to  New  Zealand.  He  did  so  little  business  in  the  country 
town  where  he  resided,  that  to  give  it  up  was  no  loss.  The 
loss  was  to  Mr.  Tracy,  whose  amusement  it  seems  to  have 
been  constantly  to  make  fresh  wills,  or  add  codicils  to  old 
ones.  I  have  found  any  number  of  draughts  and  memo- 
randa in  the  old  gentleman's  hand,  but  the  will  he  professed 
to  have  made  in  the  spring  of  1888,  leaving  all  his  money 
to  a  hospital,  is  not  forthcoming.  I  find  notes  of  in- 
creasing donations  to  myself,  beginning  in  January,  1886 
— the  date  of  my  refusal  to  comply  with  his  wishes  as  re- 
garded Giles.  Then  comes  the  will  I  have  already  named, 
made  in  1887.  But  all  this,  of  course,  is  worth  very  little 
as  evidence  that  I  did  not  influence  him ;  the  only  evidence 
of  paramount  importance  is  Eagles's.  It  was  difficult  to 
trace  him  at  first,  for  he  left  no  family  in  England,  nor 
any  address,  being  uncertain  where  he  would  go.  But  he 
has  been  found,  and  his  evidence  will  have  been  taken  on 
commission,  I  hope,  if  his  health  prevents  his  returning  to 
England  for  the  trial. 

"The  last  time  I  saw  my  uncle  he  was  very  ill.  Though 
I  did  not  know  he  was  dying,  I  felt  confident  he  would 
never  really  recover,  and  I  therefore  resolved  to  speak  to 
him  about  Giles.  I  had  some  difficulty  in  approaching  the 
subject,  but  I  referred  to  the  last  occasion  when  he  had 
mentioned  my  cousin's  name  to  me,  and  I  said  I  hoped  he 
would  reconsider  his  decision.  '  No,'  he  replied ;  '  my  will 
is  made ;  Eagles  is  gone ;  I  am  not  going  to  alter  the  last 
will  he  drew  up,  and  which  I  signed  eighteen  months  ago. 
I  haven't  altered  my  mind,  in  any  respect,  since  then.' 
'  I  am  sorry  to  hear  it,'  I  replied  ;  '  whatever  faults  Giles 
may  have  committed — '  '  Call  them  by  their  right  name,' 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERT  337 

he  interrupted,  testily  ;  '  call  them  sins.'  '  "Well,  then,  what- 
ever sins  he  has  committed,  he  is  young ;  he  has,  probably, 
a  long  life  before  him  ;  you  brought  him  up  to  believe  he 
would  be  your  heir.  It  is  cruel  to  cut  him  off  absolutely, 
and  without  any  hope  for  the  future.' 

"I  traversed  the  same  ground  over  and  over  again  ;  I 
left  the  old  man  no  peace ;  and  at  length  I  induced  him  to 
allow  me  to  wire  for  an  old  solicitor,  named  Pringle, 
whom  Mr.  Tracy  knew  something  of,  from  London.  He 
promised  me  to  add  a  codicil  to  his  last  will,  devising  the 
sum  of  twenty  thousand  pounds  to  his  executors,  in  trust 
for  his  nephew,  Giles  Tracy,  securing  by  this  means  that 
my  cousin  should  not  beggar  himself  by  gambling.  I  did 
not  remain  in  the  room  when  he  gave  these  instructions, 
for  my  uncle  said  he  wished  to  be  alone  with  Mr.  Pringle  ; 
and  he  vouchsafed  no  hint  of  the  main  tenor  of  the  will, 
which  I  then  firmly  believed  devised  the  greater  part  of 
his  fortune,  as  he  had  told  me,  to  a  hospital.  Nor  did  I 
learn  till  his  death,  three  months  later,  when  this  will  was 
opened,  that  he  had  left  the  whole  of  his  vast  fortune,  ex- 
cept this  twenty  thousand  pounds,  to  me. 

"Mr.  Pringle  predeceased  my  uncle ;  his  testimony 
would  have  been  valueless  on  the  main  points,  inasmuch 
as  he  did  no  more  than  add  this  codicil  to  the  will,  which 
had  been  executed  eighteen  months  before.  But  it  would 
have  gone  to  prove  that  Mr  Tracy  obviously  chose  that  I 
should  be  kept  in  ignorance  of  the  disposition  of  his  money. 
He  ordered  me  from  the  room,  as  I  have  said,  before  Mr. 
Pringle  opened  the  will  and  read  it  to  him,  as  the  old  law- 
yer told  me  afterwards,  at  my  uncle's  request.  '  And  his 
mind,'  he  added,  '  was  remarkably  clear.' 

"I  have  now  shown  you  how  false  is  the  assertion  that 
22 


338  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

I  brought  a  lawyer  to  my  uncle's  death-bed,  to  reverse  his 
will  in  my  favor.  It  had  been  signed  and  attested  eighteen 
months  before,  without  my  having  any  knowledge  of  its 
provisions.  As  to  the  second  signature,  which  my  cousin 
was  foolish  enough,  at  first,  to  dispute — if  proved  to  be  a 
forgery  it  would  only  affect  his  legacy  of  twenty  thousand 
pounds ! 

"The  world  has  been  very  ready  to  believe  that  I  am 
a  blackguard ;  therefore  I  have  kept  aloof,  alike  from 
friends  and  foes.  I  will  neither  conciliate  the  latter,  nor 
oblige  the  former  to  declare  themselves  for  me,  until  my 
name  is  cleared  of  this  foul  charge  in  the  open  court  of 
law. 

"  When  I  heard  I  was  my  uncle's  heir,  my  first  Quixotic 
idea  was  to  divide  the  fortune  with  Giles.  That  idea,  of 
course,  I  soon  dismissed,  not  alone  on  account  of  his  at- 
titude towards  me,  but  because  I  felt  I  should  not  be  justi- 
fied in  contravening  my  uncle's  express  wishes  as  regarded 
the  fortune  which  his  industry  had  built  up.  Could  I  think 
that  Mr.  Tracy  had  formed  an  unjust  estimate  of  Giles's 
character,  I  can  honestly  say  I  would,  even  now,  give  him 
half  the  estate,  regardless  of  the  misconstruction  such 
an  act  would  meet  with  from  the  good-natured  world. 
But  I  have  ascertained  that  my  uncle  had  ample  reason 
for  deciding  as  he  did.  I  say  no  more.  The  trial  will 
come  on  in  a  few  days.  Everything  in  law  is  uncertain — 
except  the  costs  !  Eagles  is  due  this  week.  If  he  dies  on 
the  passage,  or  that  by  other  misadventure  his  evidence 
is  not  forthcoming,  I  shall  be  bitterly,  grievously  disap- 
pointed. Not  that  it  will  affect  the  issue  of  the  case.  I 
know  that  my  adversary  cannot  upset  the  will  ;  he  has 
not,  legally,  a  leg  to  stand  on.  But  between  technical  and 


A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY  339 

moral  victory  there  is  a  wide  difference.  The  attorney's 
testimony  as  to  my  uncle's  anger  against  Giles,  which  led 
to  his  altering  his  will  and  sending  for  me — this,  and  his 
having  been  present  at  our  interview,  are  of  the  utmost 
importance  to  me.  Without  this  testimony  I  shall  not  feel 
that  my  character  is  completely  cleared  in  the  world's  esti- 
mation. Is  this  over-sensitiveness  ?  I  do  not  think  so  ;  I 
am  afraid  you  will.  But  at  all  events,  whether  I  obtain 
this  satisfaction  or  not,  you  will  hear  from  me  as  soon  as 
the  trial  is  over.  Until  that  time  I  must  be  silent ;  I  can 
then,  without  fear  of  what  man  may  say,  ask  you  a  ques- 
tion which  I  have  not  felt  myself,  hitherto,  entitled  to  do. 
"And  so,  my  dear  Miss  Ballinger,  for  the  present,  fare- 
well I  Your  very  faithful  friend, 

"IvoB  LAWRENCE." 

The  long  strain  was  ended  at  last.  Her  joy 
found  its  vent  in  tears.  What  did  anything 
signify  now  ?  Between  the  measured  words,  the 
self-imposed  restraint,  she  read  the  truth — the 
truth  which,  she  repeated  to  herself  over  and 
over  again,  she  had  known  all  along.  Grace  fell 
on  her  knees,  there,  beside  the  window,  where  she 
read  the  letter — the  window  which  looked  out  on 
the  rocky  peaks  and  snowy  summits  of  that  won- 
derful region— and  thanked  God,  child-like,  for 
her  deliverance  from  the  sorest  grief  it  is  given 
humanity  to  suffer — disillusion. 

When  she  arose,  there  was  a  light  on  her  coun- 
tenance which  shone  there  all  day.  But  those 


340  A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

who  loved  her,  knowing  naught  of  the  letter,  only 
said  to  each  other, 

"How  radiant  Grace  looks — quite  like  her  old 
self.  At  last  she  is  beginning  to  forget  !" 

They  left  that  hospitable  home,  to  which  they 
will  always  look  back  with  grateful  and  pleasure- 
able  recollection,  the  next  morning.  Except  on 
the  higher  peaks,  and  in  the  fastnesses  of  rock, 
the  snow  was  gone.  There  is  no  thaw  in  that 
blessed  region  ;  the  snow  is  absorbed  by  evapo- 
ration, and  the  rich  brown  earth  appears  from 
beneath  it,  offering  at  once  a  solid  resistance  to 
the  feet  of  man  and  beast. 

The  Caldwells  accompanied  them  to  the  depot, 
and  there,  Avhile  they  were  bidding  the  travellers 
good-by,  a  head  appeared  at  the  window  of  a  pri- 
vate car,  which  seemed  to  Mordaunt  like  a  direct 
manifestation  that  Providence  was  actively  em- 
ployed in  his  behalf.  How  otherwise  could  it  be 
accounted  for — surely  not  by  mere  paltry  coin- 
cidence—  that  Mr.  Planter  should  be  travelling 
to  San  Francisco  by  this  train,  with  his  wife  and 
daughter  ? 

The  greater  part  of  the  journey  Mordaunt  passed 
in  that  private  car.  Mrs.  Frarnpton  and  Grace 
were  also  invited  to  take  their  seats  in  it,  but 
they  candidly  confessed  that  they  found  it  too 
fatiguing  to  talk  all  day  long  in  a  train,  and  con- 


A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  341 

fined  themselves  to  paying  a  daily  visit  to  the 
ladies  at  tea-time.  At  first,  Grace  had  some  ado 
to  persuade  her  aunt  to  receive  this  small  hospi- 
tality, or,  indeed,  to  be  passably  civil.  She  was 
extremely  annoyed  at  meeting  these  people,  "  the 
only  ones,"  as  she  said,  "  on  the  whole  of  this  con- 
tinent, I  particularly  wished  to  avoid."  But  she 
was  too  clever  not  to  accept  the  logic  of  events. 
Since  the  girl  and  her  parents  were  there — un- 
der her  nose — the  best  thing  she  could  do  was 
to  study  them,  not  to  put  herself  in  the  wrong 
with  Mordy,  and  so  damage  her  influence,  by  her 
demeanor  to  his  friends.  The  father  belonged  to 
a  type  she  had  not  yet  met,  and  him  she  soon 
got  to  like.  He  had  no  pretension  of  any  kind, 
but  possessed  great  shrewdness  and  considerable 
business  capacity.  Unfortunately,  he  had  also 
an  inveterate  love  of  speculation.  He  had  made 
three  fortunes,  and  lost  two.  He  spoke  quite 
simply  of  his  deficient  education,  his  early  strug- 
gles, his  successes,  and  his  failures.  He  was  now 
on  the  top  of  the  wave.  But  (Mrs.  Frampton 
asked  herself)  how  long  would  he  remain  there  ? 
As  an  acquaintance,  she  found  him  really  quite 
interesting  ;  he  told  her  so  much  about  railway 
stocks,  in  which  he  had  a  large  amount  of  capital, 
and  explained  to  her  the  resources  of  the  country 
through  which  these  lines  passed.  "  But,"  as  she 


342  •          A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

said  to  her  niece,  "  clever  and  straightforward  as 
the  man  is — and  he  does  impress  me  with  a  gi'eat 
sense  of  straightforwardness — one  would  never 
feel  safe  with  such  a  speculator !  He  told  me 
openly  he  didn't  wish  his  daughter  to  marry  an 
Englishman,  and  though  he  would  never  forbid 
her  marrying  any  one  she  loved,  he  would  try 
and  prevent  it  by  all  the  weight  of  his  influence. 
That  is  my  only  hope !  I  see  Mordy  is  very  far 
gone.  But  the  girl  does  not  care  enough  about 
him,  I  suspect,  to  oppose  her  father." 

"Perhaps  so.  I  am  not  sure.  How  do  you 
like  her?  Don't  you  think,  besides  her  beauty, 
that  she  is  very  attractive?" 

"I  am  always  attracted  by  beauty.  You  know 
it  is  a  weakness  of  mine.  And  she  has  a  nice 
voice  and  good  manners.  I  won't  say  more  at 
present.  I  must  watch  her.  But  if  she  was  an 
angel  straight  from  heaven,  I  shouldn't  wish 
Mordy  to  marry  a  girl  with  such  uncertain  pros- 
pects." 

Grace  smiled. 

"I  suspect  an  angel  straight  from  heaven  would 
not  come,  *  in  utter  nakedness,  but  trailing  clouds 
of  glory  !'  Mr.  Planter,  who  seems  devoted  to 
his  daughter,  would  not  allow  her  to  be  depend- 
ent on  his  speculative  ventures,  I  should  think. 
However,  it  is  no  use  worrying  about  it,  aunty, 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  343 

one  way  or  the  other.  The  thing  may  never  come 
to  pass." 

"  No.  Mordy  suffers  from  chronic  inflammation 
of  the  heart.  Only  he  has  the  disease  in  rather  a 
worse  form  than  usual.  I  wish  it  had  been  Bea- 
trice Hurlstone,  however." 

Her  niece  made  no  reply.  It  was  wiser  to  let 
her  aunt  absorb  and  assimilate  the  Planter  fam- 
ily slowly,  than  to  cram  them  down  her  throat. 
And  the  next  day  Mrs.  Frampton  said, 

"I  have  been  talking  a  good  deal  to  the 
mother.  I  don't  dislike  her.  She  is  not  as  clever, 
she  has  not  the  worldly  tact  of  Mrs.  Hurlstone, 
and  is  evidently  inferior  to  her  daughter  and  to 
the  husband,  but  I  don't  think  she  is  a  bad  sort 
of  woman." 

"  Certainly  not.  On  the  contrary,  most  amia- 
ble." 

"  She  has  been  telling  me  a  great  deal  about 
her  girl's  bringing  up." 

"  Ah !     That  is  a  favorite  subject  of  hers." 

"  She  says  they  both  prefer  England  to  Amer- 
ica." 

"The  daughter  does  not  go  that  length,  at 
present.  Mr.  Planter  is  a  very  indulgent  hus- 
band and  father,  but  I  suppose  he  would  not  be 
pleased  if  he  heard  his  wife  say  that." 

Mrs.  Frampton  complained  much  of  the  tedium 


344  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

of  the  journey,  though  the  capacity  of  roaming 
through  a  long  train  of  cars,  of  visiting,  when  so 
minded,  the  one  devoted  to  refreshment,  and  of 
studying  the  Planter  family  at  stated  intervals, 
broke  the  monotony  of  those  three  days  and 
nights.  To  Grace,  her  head  pressed  against  the 
window  most  of  the  time,  with  a  wonderful  pan- 
orama rolling  past  her  dreamy  eyes,  the  time 
did  not  seem  long.  Her  thoughts  and  heart  were 
far  away — now,  in  some  foggy  chambers  in  the 
King's  Bench  Walk,  now  in  the  yet  foggier  law 
courts.  Therefore  it  was  that  her  eyes  looked 
dreamy,  though  they  gazed  on  the  grand  scenery 
of  the  La  Veta  range  till  darkness  swallowed  it 
up,  and  though  they  opened  at  daybreak  to  find 
those  mountains  lying  like  a  string  of  pink  shells 
on  the  horizon,  their  bases  still  veiled  in  blue 
mists,  while  the  tawny  yellow  prairie,  and  cliffs 
of  sandstone  in  the  foreground,  were  gradually 
being  kissed  into  life  by  the  rising  sun.  The 
whole  of  the  journey  was  memorable  for  its 
beauty  and  strangeness,  and  will  never  be  forgot- 
ten by  that  solitary  watcher  at  the  car-window, 
though  it  seemed  at  the  time  as  though  her  mind 
were  too  much  engrossed  to  be  very  sensitive  to 
the  impression  of  outward  objects.  Through 
the  lovely  plain  of  Utah,  past  Salt  Lake  City, 
surrounded  by  its  still  leafless  gardens  and  or- 


A  VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY  345 

chards ;  over  wild  stretches  of  frozen  prairie, 
where  the  little  dogs  came  out  of  their  holes  and 
sat  up,  unafraid,  on  their  hind-legs  to  watch  the 
train  ;  down,  at  twilight,  into  the  very  heart  of 
purple-folded  hills,  clear-cut  against  the  orange 
glow  of  sunset  ;  boring  its  way  through  mighty 
walls  of  granite — the  train  sped  on,  till  the  morn- 
ing of  the  third  day  broke  and  revealed  a  very 
different  scene.  It  was  as  though  a  wizard's 
hand  had  touched  the  roadside,  the  vast  stretches 
of  garden  and  vineyard,  with  an  emerald  green, 
the  vividness  of  which,  no  doubt,  seemed  greater 
by  contrast  with  the  midwinter  the  travellers  had 
been  looking  upon  but  a  few  hours  since.  Here, 
in  California,  it  was  not  spring,  but  already  early 
summer ;  arum-lilies  thrust  up  their  sheafs  of 
bloom  behind  the  palings  of  little  white-faced 
houses  ;  great  fruit  farms  were  a-flush  with  al- 
mond, peach,  and  apricot-blossom ;  and  here  and 
there  scarlet  and  gold  flashed  out  among  the 
greenery  as  the  train  rushed  by. 

To  two  young  persons  without  much  poetry 
in  their  composition — the  one  engrossed  with  his 
companion,  the  other  pleased,  amused,  and  flat- 
tered— these  varying  aspects  of  nature,  and  the 
sudden  melting  of  the  iron  bands  of  winter,  spoke 
only  the  dryest  prose.  It  had  been  cold ;  was  now 
suddenly  warm ;  instead  of  snow  and  ice,  green 


346  A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY 

blades  of  grass  were  sprouting  everywhere.  And 
that  was  all.  Had  they  read,  and  if  so  did  they 
understand,  the  sweet  old  fable  of  "  The  Sleeping 
Beauty"  awakened  by  the  magic  horn  of  love? 
Certain  it  is  that  the  fancy  of  neither  suggested 
any  analogy  between  that  fable  and  the  frost- 
bound  earth  casting  off  her  fetters,  under  the 
warm  breath  of  spring,  arising  and  putting  forth 
her  tender  buds,  and  bursting,  after  slumberous 
silence,  into  song.  And  no  doubt  it  was  just  as 
well.  Had  either  been  of  an  imaginative  temper- 
ament, he  or  she  would  not  have  suited  the  other 
— for  all  present  purposes — as  well. 

On  the  third  afternoon  they  entered  the  fair  city 
of  Sau  Francisco. 


CHAPTER   XXII 

Two  young  men  were  waiting  at  the  depot,  evi- 
dently prepared  by  telegram  for  Miss  Planter's  ar- 
rival. In  the  course  of  the  evening  several  more 
appeared  at  the  Palace  Hotel,  among  them  Mr. 
Bloxsome.  And  during  the  Planters'  stay  at  San 
Francisco  their  rooms  were  scarcely  ever  free  from 
her  admirers,  who  came  there  sometimes  "single 
spies,"  sometimes  in  "  battalions." 

These  half-dozen  young  men  were,  one  and 
all,  beginning  with  John  Bloxsome,  unfavorable 
specimens  of  San  Franciscan  youth.  One  or 
two  of  them  were  handsome  ;  one  or  two  were 
apparently  not  ill -educated — but  they  had  en- 
joyed few  social  advantages  ;  they  were  loud  and 
familiar;  their  standards  of  conduct  were  low; 
and  they  moved  in  a  circumscribed  orbit,  outside 
which  they  neither  knew,  nor  cared  for,  anything. 
Their  attitude  towards  Mordaunt  Ballinger  was 
not  openly  inimical. 

Civility,  which  would  have  been  overpower- 
ing but  that  it  lacked  the  ring  of  sincerity,  was 


348  A    VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY 

the  rule.  They  were  always  offering  Mordaunt 
"  drinks  "  at  the  bar,  whenever  he  passed  through 
the  hall,  or  inviting  him  to  go  to  a  gambling- 
saloon,  or  to  other  resorts,  all  of  which  he  rather 
loftily  declined.  Nor  did  they  fare  much  better 
with  Grace.  She  marvelled  at  Miss  Planter's  tol- 
eration. But  early  association,  custom,  and  that 
wonderful  adaptability  of  hers  accounted  for  it, 
she  supposed. 

This  only  partially  interfered  with  the  intima- 
cy, which  chance  had  done  so  much  to  forward, 
between  the  Ballingers  and  the  Planters,  by  the 
fact  of  their  travelling  those  three  days  together. 
Mrs.  Frampton  would  certainly  have  declined  the 
drives  to  the  Seal  Rocks  and  the  Presidio,  the  the- 
atre parties  and  the  expeditions  by  night  to  the 
Chinese  Quarter,  in  which  she  and  her  niece  joined, 
had  her  mind  not  been  gradually  inured  to  accept 
the  idea  of  the  Planters  as  of  something  which 
it  was  useless  to  try  and  avoid.  And  indeed,  per- 
sonally, she  had  no  wish  to  avoid  them.  She  was 
indisposed  to  accept  the  handsome  American  girl 
as  a  fitting  wife  for  Mordaunt,  but,  short  of  this, 
she  liked  her  fairly  well ;  and  with  Pere  Planter 
she  was  now  great  friends.  The  mother  and  she 
had  not  much  in  common,  and  the  young  men  an- 
noyed her — perhaps  too  evidently.  But,  on  the 
whole,  there  was  no  denying  that  the  Planters' 


A   VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY  349 

being  in  the  same  hotel,  and  being  so  cordially 
disposed  towards  the  English  trio,  made  their  stay 
at  San  Francisco  far  more  agreeable  than  it  would 
otherwise  have  been.  That  this  should  be  so  in 
the  case  of  Mordaunt  was  a  foregone  conclusion. 
Yet,  strange  to  say,  he  was  the  one  who  seemed 
least  happy.  What  his  aunt  called  the  "bray- 
ing chorus  "  disturbed  his  equanimity  even  more 
than  it  did  hers.  His  manner  towards  these  noisy 
young  men  had,  it  must  be  confessed,  that  exas- 
perating superiority  which  is  calculated  to  in- 
flame animosity  more  than  anything  else.  Clare 
— perhaps  of  set  purpose — was  occasionally  capri- 
cious in  her  demeanor  towards  him.  As  a  rule, 
she  certainly  showed  more  preference  for  the  so- 
ciety of  her  English  admirer  than  for  that  of  any 
other  man.  But,  now  and  again,  she  would,  al- 
most ostentatiously,  choose  Bloxsome  or  one  of 
the  "braying  chorus"  to  walk  with,  or  retire  to 
a  corner  of  the  room  with,  and  converse  with  in 
whispers,  to  Mordaunt's  utter  distraction.  He  did 
his  best  not  to  let  his  wretchedness  be  seen  at 
such  times,  but  to  his  aunt  and  sister  it  was  only 
too  apparent.  This  irritation  was  further  aggra- 
vated by  the  receipt  of  letters  which  he  burned, 
without  naming  them,  at  the  time,  but  the  effect 
of  which  was  apparent  to  both  Mrs.  Frampton 
and  Grace.  The  former  was  not  altogether  dis- 


350  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

pleased.  If,  by  suffering,  the  evil  she  dreaded  could 
be  averted,  why,  then,  it  was  better  so.  But  each, 
after  her  own  fashion,  acknowledged  the  obliga- 
tions they  were  all  under  to  the  Planters. 

"  They  certainly  are  very  kind,"  said  Mrs. 
Frampton  ;  "  much  kinder  than  English  people 
would  be  to  three  Americans  of  whom  they  knew 
so  little.  And  what  surprises  me  is  that  Mr. 
Planter  should  not  avoid  us  altogether  if  he  does 
not  wish  his  daughter  to  marry  Mordy.  To  our 
ideas  it  seems  very  odd — letting  a  man  be  with 
your  daughter  so  much  if  you  want  to  discour- 
age him." 

"That  is  because  you  do  not  understand  the 
American  character,  and  way  of  bringing  up. 
Clare  has  never  been  controlled;  she  doesn't  know 
what  it  means.  She  likes  Mordy's  devotion — up 
to  a  certain  point — as  she  likes  these  other  young 
men  dangling  after  her.  Whether  it  means  more 
than  this,  as  regards  Mordy,  I  can't  say.  I  doubt 
if  she  knows  herself.  She  seems  to  me,  every  now 
and  then,  to  be  afraid  ;  to  be  determined  to  make 
a  stand  ;  not  to  be  hurried,  and  therefore  to  go  on 
as  she  does  with  the  others." 

"  I  am  very  glad  she  does,"  said  her  aunt,  de- 
cisively. "  I  like  the  girl,  but  she  is  an  outra- 
geous flirt;  and  Mordy's  eyes  had  much  better 
be  open  to  the  fact.  All  the  same,  it  is  not  hu- 


A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  351 

manly  possible  she  can  prefer  any  of  those  creat- 
ures to  Mordy,  and  therefore  I  can't  understand 
the  father  letting  them  be  so  much  together." 

"  I  am  quite  sure  opposition  would  do  no  good. 
If  she  was  curbed  she  would  kick.  Mr.  Planter 
shows  his  wisdom  in  giving  her  her  head." 

"  What  a  horsy  illustration,  my  dear !  What 
you  say  makes  me  feel  more  and  more  that  the 
girl,  attractive  as  she  is — and  I  really  do  like  her 
now — is  not  fitted  for  English  domestic  life.  A 
woman  who  doesn't  know  what  yielding  means, 
and  who  wants  a  chorus  of  idiots,  or  of  vulga- 
rians like  Mr.  Bloxsome,  round  her,  is  not  our  ideal 
of  a  wife." 

"She  would  be  quite  different  when  she  mar- 
ried, aunt.  That  is  the  peculiarity  of  these  Amer- 
icans. They  take  their  fun  out  as  girls.  When 
the  serious  business  of  life  begins,  and  they  are 
put  into  double  harness — I  declare  I  am  getting 
horsy  again  ! — they  give  up  kicking  and  rearing, 
and  settle  down  into  a  steady  trot." 

"  Well,  I  shall  never  understand  them — never! 
How  a  girl  who  knows  what  an  English  gentle- 
man is  like  can  for  a  moment  tolerate  such  a  set 
of  men  as  I  see  round  her!  It  passes  all  belief. 
How  long  does  Mordy  mean  to  stay  here?  As 
to  business,  it  is  all  nonsense.  He  has  left  none 
of  the  introductions  to  business  men  which  he 


352  A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

brought.  The  sooner  we  can  get  him  away,  the 
better." 

"  It  will  not  make  much  difference.  We  are  to 
go  to  Monterey,  and  so  are  the  Planters." 

Mrs.  Frampton  gave  a  gesture  of  impatience. 
"Do  they  do  it  on  purpose?" 

"  No.  Mordy  does  it  on  purpose.  I  knew  it  all 
along.  But  we  are  powerless,  aunty.  There  is 
nothing  for  it  but  to  yield  with  a  good  grace. 
If  this  thing  is  to  be,  it  will  be,  and  we  must 
make  the  best  of  it.  Neither  Mr.  Planter  nor 
you  will  be  able  to  prevent  it.  But  I  don't  feel 
at  all  sure  that  the  girl  means  to  marry  him." 

"  I  hope  to  Heaven  she  doesn't !"  ejaculated 
her  aunt,  and  at  the  same  moment  Mordaunt  en- 
tered with  an  open  letter  in  his  hand. 

"This  is  the  third  blackguard  anonymous  let- 
ter I  have  received  about  the  Planters,"  he  said, 
as  he  pitched  it  into  the  fire.  "Of  course,  it 
doesn't  affect  me  one  way  or  another.  It  is 
curious  the  writer  should  think  an  Englishman 
would  pay  any  attention  to  such  cowardly  at- 
tacks on  his  friends.  I  should  like  to  tell  old 
Planter,  but,  of  course,  it's  better  not."  Then  he 
poked  fiercely  at  the  fire.  There  was  a  pause. 
Neither  his  aunt  nor  Grace  chose  to  ask  what 
the  letters  contained.  But,  after  a  moment,  Mrs. 
Frampton  said, 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  353 

"  When  are  you  going  on  to  Monterey?  Soon, 
I  hope?" 

"  Well,  the  Planters  talk  of  going  next  week. 
I  thought,  if  you  don't  mind,  we  might  as  well 
wait,  and  travel  down  with  them." 

"Why  not  go  before  them?  I  don't  like  ar- 
riving and  departing  together  like  a  travelling 
troupe.  And  I  don't  like  your  being  herded  with 
all  those  men  who  crowd  round  Miss  Planter.  It 
is  not  dignified.  You  had  far  better  leave  the 
young  lady  a  few  days'  uninterrupted  enjoyment 
of  her  Californian  admirers." 

Mordaunt  winced.  "Miss  Planter  cares  noth- 
ing for  them  or  their  admiration,  I  am  sure.  She 
has  known  many  of  them  since  she  was  a  child. 
It  is  their  way.  It  seems  odd  to  you,  aunt,  but 
it  means  nothing." 

"  Oh !  I  don't  pretend  to  understand  their 
ways,  only  I  don't  admire  them,  that  is  all. 
And  I  particularly  dislike  your  being  mixed 
up  with  men  who  are  as  likely  as  not  to 
pick  a  quarrel  with  you.  They  are  all  jealous 
of  you.  Under  their  smiling  manner  I  can  see 
that.  That  dreadful  Bloxsome  is  the  only  one 
who  has  the  courage  to  be  downright  rude.  If 
you  take  my  advice  you  will  not  prolong  the 
situation." 

Mordaunt  took  one  or  two  turns  through  the 
23 


354  A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY 

room.  "  Do  you  think  one  of  those  fellows  can 
have  written  this  letter  ?" 

"How  can  I  tell?  I  should  think  it  not  un- 
likely. I  imagine  from  what  you  say  it  must  be 
written  by  some  one  whose  object  it  is  to  detach 
you  from  your  friends.  And  certainly  nothing 
that  any  of  those  men  did  would  surprise  me." 

By  an  odd  coincidence  that  same  evening,  as 
Mrs.  Frampton  sat  in  close  confab  with  Mr.  Plan- 
tei',  while  the  young  people,  under  Mrs.  Planter's 
chaperonage,  were  gone  to  the  theatre,  the  Amer- 
ican drew  from  his  pocket  two  letters,  and  said, 
rather  suddenly, 

"Do  you  know  a  New-Yorker  named  John 
Reid  ?" 

"Yes  ;  a  very  nice  man.  I  knew  him  in  Boston, 
where  his  mother  lives." 

"Is  he  a  great  friend  of  Sir  Mordaunt's?" 

"  I  think  he  may  be  called  so.  They  have  not 
known  each  other  very  long,  but  Mr.  Reid  was 
very  kind  to  my  nephew  in  New  York,  and  useful 
in  giving  him  advice." 

"They  had  no  quarrel?  You  have  no  reason 
to  suppose  he  would  abuse  your  nephew  ?" 

"  Abuse  Mordaunt  ?  Good  gracious  !  No. 
Why  should  he  ?" 

"  I  don't  know  ;  only  I  have  had  a  letter  sent 
me  purporting  to  come  from  him,  and  forwarded 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  355 

by  an  anonymous  correspondent.  In  that  letter 
he  says  some  very  hard  things  of  Sir  Mordaunt. 
I  like  all  that  is  open  and  fair,  Mrs.  Frampton.  I 
don't  much  care  about  anonymous  letters.  But  I 
get  a  lot  of  them,  all  the  time." 

"  Oh  !  It  is  a  common  practice  here,  is  it  ?  My 
nephew  had  one  about  you  to-day,  which  he  threw 
into  the  fire  at  once,  Mr.  Planter.  He  has  had 
several,  I  believe.  Any  one  who  pays  attention 
to  an  anonymous  letter  deserves  to  receive  plenty, 
that  is  all  I  can  say.  But  this  other  letter,  abus- 
ing my  nephew,  is  not  anonymous,  you  say?  If 
it  pretends  to  be  from  Mr.  Reid,  it  must  be  some- 
thing worse." 

"Yes.  I  strongly  suspect,  from  what  you  tell 
me,  it  is  a  forgery.  There  it  is.  You  can  show 
it  to  your  nephew.  If  he  thinks  it  worth  while, 
he  can  wire  to  Reid." 

She  gave  Mordaunt  the  letter  on  his  return  that 
night. 

When  he  opened  it  he  was  startled.  The  writ- 
ing so  closely  resembled  John  Reid's,  several  of 
whose  notes,  referring  to  business  matters,  he  had 
preserved,  that  it  was  difficult  at  first  to  pronounce 
this  to  be  a  forgery.  He  read  it  aloud  to  his  aunt. 
There  was  no  direction,  nor  indication  as  to  whom 
the  letter  was  addressed. 

It  ran  thus : 


356  A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

"  DEAR  GEORGE, — You  ask  for  my  opinion  of  the  Eng- 
lishman, Sir  Mordaunt  Ballinger,  whom  you  say  you  be- 
lieve is  a  friend  of  mine.  He  was  a  friend  of  mine,  until 
I  discovered  that  he  was  a  scoundrel,  who  ought  not  to  be 
received  into  any  respectable  American  house.  His  char- 
acter is  too  well  known  in  his  own  country  for  him  to 
have  any  chance  of  retrieving  his  broken  fortunes  there 
by  marrying  an  heiress.  Therefore  he  has  come  here,  laden 
with  debt  and  dishonor,  to  try  and  induce  some  rich  girl, 
for  the  sake  of  becoming  '  My  lady,'  to  marry  him.  On 
arrival,  he  first  made  up  to  Miss  Hurlstone,  but  they  soon 
saw  that  he  was  only  a  fortune-hunter,  and  showed  him 
the  door.  Now  I  understand  that  he  is  pursuing  Miss 
Planter.  If  you  know  the  family,  it  would  be  but  kind 
to  warn  them  as  to  this  Englishman's  real  character.  He 
is  a  thorough  profligate,  and  he  has  a  contempt  at  heart 
for  all  that  is  American  which  he  tries  to  conceal.  It 
would  be  a  sad  day  for  any  of  our  nice  girls,  in  which 
she  became  his  wife. 

"  I  am,  dear  George,  yours  cordially, 

1 '  JOHN  REID.  " 

Mrs.  Frampton  was  the  first  to  speak. 

"  What  do  you  mean  to  do  ?     Wire  at  once  ?" 

"  Yes,  for  Mr.  Planter's  satisfaction,  not  mine. 
Of  course  I  know  Reid  couldn't  have  written  that. 
But  of  all  the  cowardly,  damnable  tricks —  !" 

"What  did  I  tell  you  this  morning?  Some  of 
these  men,  in  their  mad  jealousy  and  envy,  are 
capable  of  anything." 

"  I  couldn't  have  believed  it !    I  hope  old  Plan- 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  357 

ter  attached  no  weight  to  this  precious  communi- 
cation ?" 

"No,  or  he  would  not  have  shown  it  to  me. 
He  suggested  that  it  was  a  forgery  with  a  calm- 
ness which  showed  that  he  regarded  it  as  an  every- 
day occurrence." 

And  a  forgery  it  proved  to  be.  The  reply  to 
Mordaunt's  telegram  came  in  these  words  : 

"  Have  no  correspondent  named  George.  Have  written 
no  letter  concerning  you  to  any  one." 

Mordaunt  took  it  to  Mr.  Planter. 

"Is  there  no  means  of  tracing  the  perpetrator 
of  this  vile  fraud  ?" 

The  American  shook  his  head,  and  smiled. 
"'  These  lies  are  of  no  account  with  us,  sir." 

"So  I  should  hope,  but  they  are  not  the  less 
disgraceful." 

"I  have  thought  it  better  to  show  the  docu- 
ment to  my  daughter,  sir.  She  is  the  person 
most  concerned.  It  is  but  fair  that  she  should 
judge  whether  what  is  here  said  of  you  is  likely 
to  be  true." 

"The  only  part  she  might  possibly  believe  is 
that  about  Miss  Hurlstone.  Well,  it  is  a  lie,  Mr. 
Planter.  She  was  the  first  pretty  girl  I  saw  in 
New  York,  and  I  flirted  with  her  once  or  twice, 
as  any  fellow  might.  She  was  never  anything  to 


358  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

me,  and  from  the  moment  I  saw  your  daughter  I 
never  thought  of  any  other  girl.  I  have  asked  her 
to  marry  me,  and  she  has  refused.  But  I'm  not 
discouraged.  I'm  still  in  hopes  of  getting  her  to 
alter  her  mind,  and — and  of  getting  your  consent, 
Mr.  Planter." 

"  Well,  sir,  I  will  be  frank  with  you.  I  let  Clare 
do  pretty  much  as  she  likes,  and  I  have  no  ob- 
jection to  you  personally.  You  seem  to  me  a 
straightforward  sort  of  man,  who  are  only  a  bit 
spoiled,  I  reckon,  by  the  life  you  have  led.  I 
don't  want  my  child  to  marry  an  Englishman,  or 
any  other  sort  of  foreigner.  She  is  the  only  thing 
I  have  got  in  the  world,  and  I  want  her  to  settle 
right  down  here  in  America,  near  me  and  her 
mother,  when  she  marries.  There  now,  you  have 
it  plain.  I  like  you  better  than  the  men  who  are 
fooling  around  here.  But  they  don't  amount  to 
much.  She  would  never  have  one  of  them.  Our 
girls  like  amusing  themselves  ;  it  don't  mean  any- 
thing. And  if  you  come  right  along  with  us  to 
Monterey,  you  must  do  it  at  your  own  risk,  sir 
— as  I  told  your  aunt.  You  must  not  reproach 
Clare  with  having  led  you  on,  when  she  meant 
nothing.  And  she  would  never  marry  without 
my  consent." 

This  was  plain  speaking,  and  it  certainly  was 
not  encouraging.  Mordaunt  felt  that  to  follow 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  359 

bis  aunt's  suggestion,  and  precede  the  Planters  to 
Monterey,  was  the  only  manly  course,  consistent 
with  his  resolve  not  to  be  deterred  in  his  en- 
deavor to  win  Clare  Planter's  affections.  To  con- 
tinue to  take  part  in  the  "braying  chorus"  could 
not  be  profitable,  and  would  certainly  not  be  dig- 
nified. Mrs.  Frampton  received  the  announce- 
ment that  they  were  to  leave  San  Francisco  the 
following  day  with  a  satisfaction  which  she  was 
at  no  pains  to  conceal. 

That  afternoon  he  had  the  courage  to  avoid 
joining  the  Planter  party,  on  the  plea  that  he 
must  go  to  some  shops  with  his  aunt  and  sister. 
So,  leaving  the  lower  streets,  where  the  chief 
traffic  of  the  city  is,  they  climbed  steep  ways 
where  the  Chinese  and  Japanese  dwell  in  colo- 
nies, and  visited  tea-houses  and  joss-houses,  and 
bought  quaint  toys  and  strange  wares  unknown  to 
Liberty  &  Co.  And  afterwards,  still  toiling  up, 
they  reached  the  eminence  generally  called  Nob 
Hill,  crowned  with  structures  that  look  like  Gen- 
oese palaces,  until  one  learns  that  what  simulates 
marble  is  but  painted  wood.  These  residences  of 
the  wealthy  merchants  are  all  embowered  in  green. 
Flowers  look  out  of  every  gate  and  doorway.  As 
to  the  arum-lilies,  they  grow  like  weeds,  thrusting 
their  white,  elongated  faces  through  the  fences  of 
even  the  smallest  houses  ;  and  wherever  there  is 


360  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY     N 

space  to  let  them  stretch  their  mighty  plumes, 
palm-trees  and  yuccas  stand  between  the  win- 
dows and  the  dusty  street. 

The  ladies  returned  to  the  hotel,  pleased  with 
their  last  ramble  through  the  city,  of  which  they 
•had  seen  more  that  day  than  they  had  done  dur- 
ing all  their  drives  the  previous  week.  But  Mor- 
daunt  was  silent  and  depressed.  His  self-confi- 
dence was  shaken.  Had  he  made  any  progress 
since  they  arrived  at  San  Francisco,  ten  days 
ago?  He  could  not  feel  that  he  had. 

Clare  Planter  came  into  their  room  at  dusk,  ap- 
parently in  high  spirits.  She  looked  unusually 
well  in  a  white  tea -gown,  with  some  crimson 
roses  on  her  bosom. 

"So  I  hear  you  go  to  Monterey  to-morrow. 
What  a  shame  to  steal  a  march  upon  us  !  And 
what  a  shame  not  to  have  passed  the  last  day  here 
with  us,  Mrs.  Frampton !"  she  exclaimed.  "  But 
you  must  really  come  in  this  evening.  We  are 
going  to  dance.  Two  or  three  girls  are  com- 
ing, and  I  have  been  to  get  a  pianist.  Don't 
shake  your  head — I  am  sure,  Sir  Mordaunt,  you 
can  persuade  your  aunt  and  sister  to  come,  if 
you  like." 

"  Thank  you,"  he  stammered,  growing  hot  and 
cold  as  he  spoke.  "  It's  awfully  good  of  you — but 
— as  for  myself,  I — I  promised  to  go  to  the  Bohe- 


A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY  361 

mian  Club  to-night.     Some  fellows  asked  me  to 
supper  there — " 

"  Oh !"  she  interrupted,  with  her  sweetest  smile, 
"Ask  the  'fellows 'to  come  to  us — bring  them 
along  with  you.  You  can't  refuse  me — now  can 
he,  Mrs.  Frampton  ?" 

"I  should  be  ashamed  of  him  if  I  didn't 
think  he  could  resist  temptation,"  laughed  his 
aunt. 

"  You  do  not  mean  that  you  refuse  me  ?"  She 
turned  her  sweet,  smiling  face  to  him. 

"  I  am  sorry  I  am  engaged,"  he  replied,  quickly, 
without  looking  at  her.  "You  have  so  many 
men — so  many  more  than  ladies — you  can't  want 
me.  My  aunt  and  my  sister  must  answer  for  them- 
selves." 

She  was  so  little  used  to  contradiction  that  she 
seemed  literally  struck  dumb.  Who  was  this  man, 
whom  she  regarded  as  her  slave,  that  he  dared 
resist  her  sovereign  will  and  pleasure  ? 

"  Grace  and  I  will  look  in  to  wish  you  good- 
by,  after  dinner.  But  it  is  not  'good-by'  for 
long,  I  believe  ?"  said  Mrs.  Frampton,  in  high 
good -humor  at  Mordaunt's  firmness.  He  was 
really  behaving  better  than  she  expected. 

"Perhaps  —  I  don't  know,"  responded  Miss 
Planter,  as  she  twirled  the  tassel  that  hung  from 
her  waist  round  her  finger,  and  then  untwiiTed 


362  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

it.  "  Some  of  my  friends  are  going  to  Santa  Bar- 
bara. Perhaps  mamma  may  go  there  instead." 

"  Your  father  spoke  very  distinctly  this  morn- 
ing of  going  to  Monterey,"  said  Mordaunt,  flush- 
ing suddenly. 

"  Oh,  yes  ;  but  papa  will  always  do  as  mam- 
ma and  I  ask  him.  That  is  the  advantage  of  hav- 
ing an  American  husband.  Englishmen  are  not 
like  that — they  can  refuse  anything  !" 

She  stung  him  with  one  sharp  look  from  her 
beautiful  eyes,  and,  with  a  little  au  revoir  to  the 
ladies,  swept  from  the  room. 

"  If  they  go  to  Santa  Barbara,  I  shall  follow 
them,"  said  Mordaunt,  recklessly,  as  soon  as  the 
door  was  closed. 

Grace  looked  up,  with  a  smile. 

"  They  will  not  go  to  Santa  Barbara." 


CHAPTEE    XXin 

IF  anything  could  have  raised  Mordaunt's 
spirits  that  night  it  would  have  been  his  supper 
with  the  joyous  Bohemians — listening  to  their 
banjos  and  bright  choruses,  and  hearing  the  tales 
of  the  "  high  jinks  "  they  hold  in  the  neighboring 
forests  in  spring-time.  Many  members  of  that 
genial  club  were  charming  enough  to  make  him 
forget  that  they  were  fellow-townsmen  of  vul- 
garians like  Bloxsome,  but  nothing  could  disperse 
the  cloud  that  overshadowed  him. 

The  girl  had  grown  dearer  to  him  every  day, 
and  yet  she  seemed  further  from  him  than  ever. 
He  would  not  blame  her,  still  less  would  he  have 
allowed  any  one  else  to  do  so.  Had  she  not  said, 
only  six  weeks  ago,  that  she  did  not  like  him 
well  enough  to  marry?  Except  during  those 
three  days  in  the  train  together — those  three  un- 
forgetable  days — they  had  never  been  alone,  as 
they  then  virtually  were,  and  nothing  had  passed 
to  justify  him  in  the  belief  that  her  heart  had 
softened.  On  the  contrary,  she  seemed  to  have 


364  A    VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

taken  special  pains  to  prevent  his  forming  such 
an  erroneous  idea.  She  treated  him  only  a  little 
better  than  the  other  young  men  round  her — just 
so  much  as  to  rouse  their  jealous  animosity — not 
enough  to  distinguish  him  as  the  one  she  had 
chosen  from  all  the  world.  Though  he  had  de- 
fended her  against  his  aunt's  insinuations,  as  re- 
garded the  "  braying  chorus,"  he  did  not  feel 
the  less  secretly  hurt.  Therefore  it  was  that  he 
was  here  at  the  Bohemian  Club  to-night,  instead 
of  gliding  round  the  Planters'  sitting-room,  with 
his  arm  round  Clare's  waist. 

He  did  not  see  the  Planters  the  following  morn- 
ing. Mrs.  Frampton  and  Grace  had  wished  them 
good-by  the  previous  evening,  and  they  were  off 
early  with  a  large  party  to  San  Rafael.  Before 
the  Ballingers  left  San  Francisco  that  day  the 
English  mail  had  arrived,  bringing  nearly  a  week's 
budget  of  letters  and  papers.  There  was  food 
enough  for  the  mind,  and  to  spare,  to  last  them 
that  short  journey. 

Mordaunt  and  his  aunt  sat  together  at  the  end 
of  the  car,  Grace  by  herself  a  little  distance  off. 
Her  letters  were  not  very  interesting,  but  she  had 
several  papers  which  Mordy  had  handed  to  her ; 
only  the  last  issues  he  and  his  aunt  were  reading. 
The  debates  naturally  claimed  the  young  mem- 
ber's first  attention  ;  the  society  journals  and 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  365 

Pall  Matt  Gazette  gossip  as  naturally  claimed 
Mrs.  Frampton's. 

"Look!  Look  here  !"  she  whispered,  suddenly, 
turning  to  her  nephew,  and  pointing  to  a  para- 
graph. "  Do  you  see  this  ?  Have  you  looked  at 
the  law  reports  ?" 

Then  he  read  the  following  : 

"The  termination  of  the  great  will  case  yesterday  is  a 
triumph  not  only  to  Mr.  Ivor  Lawrence's  personal  friends, 
but  to  all  lovers  of  fair  play  who  have  declined  to  pre- 
judge the  case,  and  who  have  viewed  with  grave  repre- 
hension the  disposition  in  society  to  believe  the  allegations 
recklessly  brought  against  a  gentleman  who  had  always 
enjoyed  an  unblemished  reputation.  Mr.  Ivor  Lawrence 
has  suffered  most  cruelly  during  the  past  eight  months, 
and  it  is  but  just  that  the  false  accusations  he  has  labored 
under  should  recoil  upon  the  head  of  Mr.  Giles  Tracy, 
who,  without  the  smallest  evidence,  dared  to  bring  these 
charges  against  his  cousin.  That  the  course  of  the  trial 
brought  to  light  certain  facts  not  wholly  creditable  to  the 
accuser  was  the  penalty  he  paid  for  his  rashness." 

Mordaunt  turned  to  the  law  report  in  the 
Times,  and  there  read,  at  large,  the  collapse  of 
the  first  day.  It  had  been  expected  it  would  ex- 
tend over  several,  but  Mr.  Eagles's  testimony  was 
so  complete  and  crushing  that  Giles  Tracy's  coun- 
sel had  no  choice  but  to  withdraw.  Unfortu- 
nately for  him,  this  withdrawal  was  not  before 
certain  indelible  stains  had  been  left  on  the  young 


366  A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

man's  character  by  the  solicitor's  evidence  as  to 
the  cause  which  led  to  the  estrangement  between 
the  testator  and  his  favorite  nephew,  an  estrange- 
ment which  hardened  into  virulent  aversion  as 
time  revealed,  more  and  more,  Giles's  true  char- 
acter. At  the  period  of  Eagles's  last  interview 
with  his  client,  he  had  no  idea  Mr.  Tracy  could 
ever  be  persuaded  to  add  a  codicil  to  his  will 
leaving  Giles  twenty  thousand  pounds.  He  felt 
sure  that  nothing  but  Mr.  Lawrence's  strong  rep- 
resentations could  have  brought  him  to  do  this. 
Mr.  Eagles  had  made  no  less  than  four  wills  for 
Mr.  Tracy.  He  believed  all  had  been  destroyed 
but  this  last  one,  in  which  he  left  everything  to 
Mr.  Lawrence.  Mr.  Tracy  did  not  wish  this  to 
be  known — least  of  all  by  the  nephew  he  resolved 
to  make  his  heir — hence  his  fiction  about  the  hos- 
pital. 

When  Mordaunt  had  read  rapidly  the  half- 
column  which  contained  this  report,  and  had 
handed  it  to  Mrs.  Frampton,  he  sat  brooding  un- 
til she  had  finished.  The  silence  was  broken  by 
her  saying, 

"  H'm  !  It  is  most  unfortunate  !  I  mean  un- 
fortunate just  note,  when  one  wants  to  distract 
her  mind  from  the  subject.  The  man  has  be- 
haved disgracefully  to  her,  at  all  events,  and  the 
sooner  she  forgets  him  the  better." 


A   VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERT  367 

"  Yes,  of  course ;  that's  all  right.  But  I  must 
show  her  the  paper." 

"  I  don't  know  what  to  say  to  that.  She  looks 
so  much  brighter  lately.  I  hope  she  is  beginning 
to  forget.  I  watch  her  when  she  little  thinks  I 
am  doing  so,  and  I  see  a  great  change  for  the 
better.  I  am  afraid  this  news  will  undo  it  all, 
by  turning  her  thoughts  again  entirely  upon  this 
wretch,  whom  I  hate  and  abominate — for  he  has 
been  the  only  cause  of  real  dissension  between 
Gracey  and  me." 

"  Can't  help  that,  aunty.  She  must  know. 
There's  no  help  for  it.  It's  an  awful  bore.  Con- 
found it !  everything  seems  to  go  wrong  since  we 
came  to  California !" 

Then,  with  a  sigh  which  appeared  to  have  its 
birth  in  his  boots,  and  went  quivering  up  his 
frame,  he  rose  and  walked  down  the  car  to  where 
his  sister  sat. 

"  Look  here,  Gracey.  Here's  something  you'll 
be  glad  to  read.  I  don't  like  the  fellow.  I  think 
he  behaved  like  a  cad,  though  I  stuck  up  for  him 
that  night  at  Mrs.  Reid's,  just  to  please  you. 
But,  of  course,  I'm  glad  to  know  he  is  not  a 
scoundrel." 

Her  eyes  sparkling,  her  face  a-flush  with  ex- 
citement, she  had  seized  the  paper  from  his  hand, 
even  while  he  spoke,  and  her  eyes  ran  rapidly 


368  A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

down  the  column  to  which  he  pointed.  When 
she  had  done,  a  sweet  smile  played  upon  her  lips. 
She  leaned  her  head  upon  her  brother's  shoulder, 
and  whispered, 

"  I  never  doubted  him  about  this,  or — or  any- 
thing else,  dear.  You  must  never  abuse  him  again 
— never — never,  Mordy.  He  is  the  soul  of  honor, 
and  of  all  that  is  noble  and  high-minded.  His 
very  faults  are  grand  faults.  You  will  learn  to 
see  that  soon,  dear — you  will,  indeed.  And  so  will 
aunty,  when — when  it  all  comes  right." 

The  branching  of  wide -armed  cypress -trees, 
and  the  incense  of  sweet  flowers  was  all  they 
knew  in  the  young  moonlight,  as  they  drove 
from  the  depot — surely  the  most  poetical  rail- 
way-station in  the  world — through  the  pleasure- 
grounds  of  the  wonderful  hotel  at  Monterey. 
They  alighted  at  the  terrace  of  a  huge,  irregular 
building,  and  the  next  minute  found  themselves 
in  a  big  hall,  crowded  with  ladies,  some  in  even- 
ing dress,  some  with  hats  and  jackets  ready  to 
sally  out  into  the  moonlight,  and  men  smoking, 
drinking  coffee,  reading  telegrams,  or  gathered 
in  knots  round  two  or  three  of  the  most  favored 
ladies  in  rocking-chairs.  Some  of  these  were 
pretty,  some,  according  to  British  ideas,  very 
much  over-dressed  for  the  occasion  ;  all  seemed 
to  be  enjoying  themselves  thoroughly,  and  not  to 


A   VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  369 

be  afraid  of  showing  that  they  were.  Small  chil- 
dren were  running  in  and  out  between  elderly 
gentlemen's  legs.  Young  men  were  strolling  in 
the  corridors,  looking  at  the  billiard  -  players 
through  the  open  door,  and  stopping  to  chaff  the 
knots  of  young  girls,  clinging  to  each  other  with 
the  effusive  affection  born  of  twenty-four  hours' 
acquaintance.  Aged  ladies  had  bezique  -  boards 
between  them,  but  were  interchanging  remarks 
in  high-pitched  voices,  none  the  less.  Aged  men 
were  discussing  Mr.  Elaine's  projects,  the  World's 
Fair,  and  canned  fruits  with  equal  vehemence. 
The  babel  of  tongues,  from  the  piercing  falsetto 
of  childhood  downwards,  was  deafening  to  the 
travellers  as  they  entered,  but  the  scene  was  so 
gay,  so  pervaded  with  bonhomie,  that  even  Mrs. 
Frampton  declared  later  that  it  was  amusing — 
"amusing  to  watch.  It  would  be  a  delightful 
place  for  deaf  persons  to  come  to.  So  lively. 
And  the  drum  of  their  ears  would  run  no  risk, 
you  know." 

In  the  morning,  Grace  looked  out  on  the  most 
lovely  garden  of  its  kind  she  had  ever  seen,  with 
glimpses  of  a  sapphire-colored  sea  between  the 
red-lilac  stems  of  pines  and  the  gnarled  boles  of 
ilex.  On  the  other  side  a  little  lake,  surrounded 
by  palms  and  bamboos ;  in  the  foreground  beds  of 
cineraria  and  sweet-smelling  stock,  with  bunches 
24 


370  A  VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

of  arums  and  lilies  raising  their  white  crests 
above  the  masses  of  rich  color.  The  fresh  morn- 
ing air  came  up  laden  with  the  first  breath  of  the 
flowers.  As  soon  as  she  was  dressed  she  went 
out  and  watched  the  Chinese  gardeners  at  work 
on  their  borders  of  floral  embroidery,  and  wan- 
dered through  the  winding  groves,  across  the 
railway  and  over  the  sand-hills  that  slope  to  the 
beach,  where  she  sat  down  awhile,  and  felt  tran- 
quilly happy.  It  was  good  that  her  happiness 
had  come  to  her  here,  where  there  were  no  jar- 
ring elements ;  where  no  constant  social  effort 
was  needed ;  where  nature  was  so  rich,  so  fra- 
grant, so  untroubled.  She  could  not  have  nursed 
the  peace  at  her  heart  so  securely  in  those  great 
cities ;  even  the  wild  crags  and  snowy  fastnesses 
of  beautiful  Colorado,  much  as  she  loved  them, 
would  have  harmonized  less  with  her  present 
mood  than  did  the  white-lipped  sea  curling  on 
the  yellow  sand,  and  the  tranquil  spaces  of  lofty 
shadow  in  the  garden,  upheld  by  the  mighty  col- 
umns of  the  Californian  pines. 

The  only  cloud  in  the  sky  that  day — and  she 
could  not  feel  that  it  was  one  impenetrable  to  the 
sun — was  her  brother's  gloom.  He  thought  that 
he  need  make  no  exertion  with  his  aunt  and  his  sis- 
ter to  assume  a  cheerfulness  he  did  not  feel,  and 
he  looked  as  miserable  as  a  man  who  has  not  lost 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  371 

his  appetite  can  look.  Mrs.  Frampton  was  much 
concerned.  She  tried  to  talk  of  investments,  but 
failed  to  rouse  his  interest.  He  was  clearly  in  a 
bad  way,  in  a  worse  way  even  than  she  had  sus- 
pected. She  was  thankful  to  have  got  him  from 
San  Francisco.  But  now  that  they  had  brought 
him  away,  what  were  they  to  do  with  him,  without 
companions,  without  purpose  or  occupation?  As 
she  watched  him  at  breakfast,  slowly  consuming 
an  egg,  with  the  air  of  an  early  martyr,  she  felt 
at  her  wit's  end  what  to  do.  However,  they 
must  not  all  three  sit  still;  movement  was  better 
than  inactivity.  She  wisely  insisted  on  their  gor 
ing  the  famous  "  seventeen-mile  drive,"  and  tak- 
ing luncheon  with  them.  She  gave  him  a  French 
novel,  and  bade  him  supply  himself  with  an  un- 
limited amount  of  tobacco.  She  took  for  herself 
an  eider-down  cushion  and  a  sketch-book.  And 
thus  armed  against  ennui,  if  the  drive  should 
prove  disappointing,  they  started. 

Though  they  drove  along  those  shores  repeat- 
edly during  the  weeks  they  remained  at  Monte- 
rey, it  never,  perhaps,  looked  quite  as  beautiful 
as  it  did  that  morning.  The  sea  was  a  wonder- 
ful color,  more  like  the  iris  with  which  the  pine 
wood  they  first  drove  through  was  carpeted  than 
anything  else  in  nature.  Above  the  pine-needles 
and  these  purple-blue  irises  rose  bushes  of  pink 


372  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

berberis,  until  the  road  opened  out  upon  a  wide 
down,  fringed  with  rocks  overhanging  the  sea. 
To-day  there  was  a  west  wind,  which  lashed 
it  into  white  foam,  not  only  against  the  cliffs, 
but  far  as  the  eye  could  reach.  Presently  they 
gained  a  group  of  island  -  rocks,  two  of  which 
were  literally  covered  with  seals,  whose  roaring 
and  strange  plaintive  cries  were  heard  more  than 
a  mile  off.  On  the  summit  of  their  home  they 
lay  dark  and  inert,  sun-dried,  and  probably  asleep. 
Lower  down  they  were  sprawling  and  flounder- 
ing about,  of  a  pale  dun  color,  ever  and  anon 
plunging  into  the  foaming  waves,  such  a  picture 
of  innocent  enjoyment  that  it  was  pleasant  to 
know  they  were  never  molested.  They  only  fre- 
quent certain  portions  of  the  coast,  and  consider- 
ing that  they  deprive  the  fishermen  there  of  a 
large  portion  of  their  spoil,  it  is  creditable  that 
the  law  which  forbids  them  to  be  destroyed  or 
disturbed  is  so  rigidly  respected. 

Soon  after  leaving  this  interesting  colony,  our 
friends  came  upon  that  unique  feature  of  this 
coast,  the  great  cypress  forest,  which  affronts  the 
winds  and  waves,  stretching  out  into  the  very  sea 
itself,  a  sentinel  now  and  again  thrust  forward 
upon  some  prominent  crag,  its  strong  gray  arms 
lifted  defiantly  against  the  foam  that  breaks  im- 
potently  over  it.  The  "  cypresses,"  as  they  are 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  373 

here  called,  closely  resemble  the  cedars  of  Leba- 
non, and  have  no  apparent  relation  to  the  col- 
umns of  solid  foliage  usually  associated  with 
the  name.  Here  and  there  the  bleached  skele- 
tons of  these  mighty  trees,  silver-lighted  in  the 
sun,  some  still  erect  in  death,  some  prone  upon 
the  sweet,  warm  grass  that  crowns  the  pink-gray 
rock,  tell  with  magic  brilliancy  against  the  broad 
sovereignty  of  impenetrable  green  that  dominates 
the  sea.  As  Grace  beheld  these  gnarled  trunks 
and  twisted  branches,  bearing  their  solemn  crowns 
aloft,  and  immovable  above  the  assaults  of  light- 
ning and  of  wind  till  death  uncrowns  and  un- 
robes them,  she  felt  that  this  was  the  realm  of 
epic  poetry,  the  ocean -forest  of  imagination,  a 
kingdom  unrivalled  upon  earth  for  its  majesty  of 
color  and  richness  of  suggestion. 

And  now  they  rounded  point  after  point,  and 
she  cried  aloud  to  her  companions  in  her  glee, 
and  they  responded  after  their  kind.  The  same 
elements  formed  fresh  combinations  at  each  turn 
— the  rocks  standing  out  like  castles  in  the  sea, 
the  cypresses,  a  beleaguering  army,  now  advanc- 
ing, now  retreating,  their  dead  lying  round  them 
unmourned,  slain  in  the  mighty  battle  with  the 
winds  of  heaven,  where,  after  centuries  of  strife, 
they  had  fallen,  and  others  had  stepped  forward 
from  the  ranks  to  take  their  place. 


374  A   VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY 

In  one  of  these  little  bays  they  stopped  the 
carriage,  and  unpacked  their  basket.  And  when 
they  had  all  eaten  Mrs.  Frampton  sharpened  her 
pencil,  and  attacked  the  scene  with  characteristic 
vigor.  She  was  not  going  to  be  beaten  by  the 
convolutions  of  a  few  trees  —  and  those  Ameri- 
can trees,  too.  Mordy  smoked  his  pipe  in  silence, 
and  fell  asleep.  Grace  rose,  and  wandered  down 
among  the  rocks. 

Just  after  this  another  carriage  drew  up  a  little 
distance  off,  from  which  a  man  alighted.  If  not 
an  Englishman,  he  was  very  like  one.  In  age  he 
appeared  to  be  near  forty  ;  strong,  somewhat 
broad,  and  not  very  tall.  He  could  not  be  said 
to  be  handsome,  his  upper  lip,  from  which  the 
hair  was  ruthlessly  cut,  being  too  long  and 
straight.  But  he  had  fine,  fearless  eyes,  and  his 
brow  was  broad  and  massive.  His  walk  was  full 
of  decision,  and  in  his  Norfolk  jacket  and  knick- 
erbockers he  had  the  look  of  a  man  who  would 
never  waver,  never  turn  back,  nor  give  in,  under 
any  ordinary  strain,  physical  or  mental.  He  stood 
still  for  a  moment,  taking  in  the  scene — in  the 
foreground  Sir  Mordaunt  Ballinger,  Bart,  and 
M.P.,  asleep,  with  his  head  on  an  eider-down 
cushion  ;  not  far  off  Mrs.  Frampton,  spectacles 
on  nose,  her  attention  riveted  on  that  group  of 
hoary  cypresses;  the  coachman  beyond,  devour- 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  375 

ing  the  remains  of  the  luncheon.  Was  there  no 
one  else  ?  No.  His  eye  scoured  the  scene  ;  then, 
making  up  his  mind  that  the  person  he  sought 
must  be  hidden  from  him  by  the  underwood  and 
rocks,  he  strode  down,  unobserved  by  Mrs.  Framp- 
ton,  to  the  edge  of  the  cliff. 

She  was  sitting  on  a  rock,  sheltered  by  the 
trees  from  the  west  wind,  her  eyes  fixed  on  the 
purple  sea,  with  its  green  stains  and  white  lips 
curled  in  anger  against  the  pebbles  on  the  shore 
below  her,  when  she  heard  a  rustle  in  the  grass, 
the  crackling  of  a  twig,  and,  looking  up,  saw  Ivor 
Lawrence  before  her. 

'  He  had  been  present  so  vividly  to  her  mind's 
eye  the  moment  before  that  she  was  scarcely 
startled.  She  caught  her  breath,  her  cheek  turned 
pale,  before  the  blood  rushed  violently  back 
there ;  that  was  all,  as  she  stammered  out, 

"  Mr.  Lawrence  !     How  wonderful !" 

He  took  her  hand  in  both  his,  and  held  it  for  a 
moment  or  two  before  he  sat  down  beside  her. 

"  Yes,  it  is  wonderful  to  meet  you  in  such  a 
spot  after  our  long  separation.  I  started  imme- 
diately the  trial  was  over.  I  had  made  all  my 
preparations  beforehand,  and  vowed  that  nothing 
should  keep  me  a  day." 

"  We  only  received  the  papers  with  the  result 
of  the  trial  yesterday." 


376  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

"I  came  over  in  the  ship  that  brought  the 
mails.  Had  I  known  your  address  I  should  prob- 
ably have  been  here  before  them.  But  I  had  to 
wait  in  New  York,  to  learn  from  your  bankers 
where  you  were."  Then  he  leaned  forward  and 
looked  yet  more  intently  into  her  face.  "You 
knew  that  I  should  come — and  come  at  once,  did 
you  not?" 

"  I — thought  you  would — if  you  could — but,  of 
course,  I  couldn't  feel  sure."  Then  she  added, 
with  that  bui'st  of  sunshine  in  her  face,  and  that 
rare  naturalness  which  belonged  to  her,  "  But,  oh, 
how  glad  I  am  !  How  wonderful  it  is  to  see  you 
here,  after  all  these  months — here,  in  this  lovely' 
spot,  when  I  have  been  thinking  of  you  in  Lon- 
don fogs  !  Oh  !  that  horrid  trial !  How  thankful 
you  must  be  it  is  over  !" 

"  Yes — not  that  I  had,  latterly,  any  anxiety  as 
to  the  result.  From  the  moment  I  knew  Eagles 
was  alive  I  knew  I  was  safe.  If  Eagles  had  not 
turned  up,  some  good-natured  people  might  still 
have  doubted  me." 

She  looked  at  him  with  her  quickly-flashing 
eye,  and  the  color  mounted  again  to  her  cheek. 

"No  one  who  knew  you — who  really  knew  you 
— could  ever  have  doubted,  though  the  trial  had 
gone  against  you  over  and  over  again  !" 

"  I  like  to  hear  you  say  that.     You  can't  repeat 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCO VEKY  377 

it  too  often ;  it  is  worth  all  the  fortunes — all  the 
triumphs  in  the  world  to  me ;  it  means  my  whole 
happiness  in  life.  You  have  never  doubted, 
through  my  silence,  that  I  loved  you  better  than 
anything  in  the  world?  You  understood  how 
it  was  that  I  kept  silent  till  I  could  face  your 
brother,  your  aunt,  every  one,  without  the  sus- 
picion of  a  stain  upon  my  name  ?" 

"  No  ;  I  have  never  doubted,  in  my  inmost 
heart,  though  I  blamed  you,"  she  said,  and  the 
tears  now  rained  down  over  her  cheeks.  .  He 
threw  his  arms  round  her,  and  kissed  the  tears 
away. 

"My  darling!  it  Avas  my  great  love  for  you — 
my  desire  that  your  name  should  not  be  bandied 
about  in  connection  with  mine  as  long  as  this  ac- 
cusation hung  over  my  head." 

She  smiled  up  at  him  through  her  tears,  while 
her  head  lay  upon  his  breast,  and  said,  with  a 
little  gesture  of  negation, 

" { Perfect  love  casteth  out  fear.' " 

Nearly  an  hour  later,  Mrs.  Frampton,  having 
finished  her  sketch,  went  in  search  of  Grace.  The 
sight  which  met  her  when,  after  hunting  about 
for  some  time,  she  reached  the  little  cove  of  rocks 
where  her  niece  and  a  man  were  seated,  thi-ir 
heads  very  close  together,  nearly  caused  the  good 


378  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

lady  a  fit.  Grace  —  Grace,  of  all  the  girls  in 
the  world  !  She  was  thunderstruck.  She  could 
hardly  believe  her  eyes.  The  man's  back  was 
turned  to  her.  She  uttered  a  loud  exclamation 
and  dropped  her  parasol. 

Grace  sprang  up,  ran  towards  her  aunt,  and 
embraced  her.  At  the  same  moment  her  compan- 
ion turned,  and  Mrs.  Frampton  recognized  in  him 
the  man  she  had  been  abusing  for  the  last  eight 
months. 

It  was  an  awkward  moment  for  her,  but  she 
was  equal  to  the  emergency.  She  seized  the  sit- 
uation at  a  glance ;  congratulated  him  on  the  re- 
sult of  the  trial ;  reproached  him  roundly  for  his 
silence  ;  and,  if  I  may  paraphrase  the  poet,  "  say- 
ing she  would  ne'er  forgive,  forgave  him."  How 
could  she  do  otherwise  ?  She  was  too  clever  a 
woman  to  stick  to  her  small  field-pieces,  when 
she  found  they  were  only  loaded  with  blank  car- 
tridge. 

Mordaunt  joined  them  soon  afterwards,  and 
behaved  like  a  good  fellow  as  he  was,  first  of  all, 
and  a  man  of  the  world  as  he  was,  afterwards. 
He  grasped  with  heartiness  the  hand  of  the  man 
whom  he  knew  now  was  to  be  his  brother.  And 
in  the  ruddy  gold  of  waning  day,  behind  the 
dark  columns  of  the  trees,  the  four  drove  back 
to  Monterey. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

THREE  days  later,  Mordaunt,  who  inquired  at 
the  office  every  morning  whether  Mr.  Planter's 
family  was  expected,  learned  that  the  best  suite 
of  rooms  was  retained  for  that  gentleman,  who 
was  expected  to  arrive  from  San  Francisco  the 
same  afternoon.  His  watchful  aunt  detected  the 
change  in  his  glad  face  when  he  sat  down  to 
breakfast,  and  she  guessed  the  cause. 

They  arrived,  happily  without  followers,  though 
Clare  took  pains  to  let  it  be  known  that  "some 
of  her  friends  "  were  coming  to  Monterey  for  the 
night  on  Sunday.  She  met  the  Englishman's 
fresh  demonstration  of  delight  at  having  her  here 
to  himself  once  more,  as  she  always  met  such 
calls,  with  every  outward  token  of  pleasure  and 
response.  Did  he  delude  himself? — or  was  there 
even  a  touch  of  something  more,  something  which 
had  not  been  there  in  her  manner  to  him  hither- 
to? Be  that  as  it  may,  she  had  no  idea  of  not 
letting  him  know  how  much  his  conduct  at  San 
Francisco  had  displeased  her..  They  were  alone 


380  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

in  the  garden,  the  first  morning  after  their  arri- 
val, when  she  said, 

"You  were  awfully  cross  and  disagreeable  at 
San  Francisco,  Sir  Mordaunt.  I  am  glad  to  see 
you  are  ever  so  much  nicer  here." 

"Well,  there  was  good  reason  for  my  being 
cross  there." 

"  Because  of  my  friends  ?  No  ;  you  were  not 
at  all  nice  to  them.  That  was  the  trouble." 

"  Not  nice  ?  I  like  that !  Come,  come,  the  worm 
will  turn  at  last.  I  don't  want  to  say  anything 
disagreeable  about  your  friends.  But  be  honest, 
confess  that  they  insinuated  every  sort  of  villainy 
about  me  behind  my  back,  though  they  were  so 
sugary  to  my  face.  You  know  as  well  as  I  do 
that  one  of  them  wrote  those  anonymous  letters." 

"  I  know  nothing  of  the  kind." 

"Then  I  do.  The  expressions  in  one  of  the  let- 
ters I  received  are  identically  the  same  that — well, 
I  won't  say  who  used  to  my  sister  when  speaking 
of  you  and  your  father.  Of  coui'se,  I  didn't  care 
a  brass  farthing." 

"No  one  does  in  San  Francisco.  People  get 
them  all  the  time,  and  no  one  pays  any  heed  to 
them.  That  was  no  excuse  for  your  treating 
my  friends  de  haul  en  bas,  as  you  did.  It  was 
very  rude  of  you — very  rude  to  me.  And  then, 
that  last  night  when  I  begged  you  —  I  actually 


A  VOYAGE    OP  DISCOVERY  381 

begged  you — to  come  to  us,  and  you  refused  ! 
After  all  your  protestations.  I  never  heard  of 
such  a  thing !" 

"  I  protest  nothing  more  than  I  feel ;  indeed, 
much  less.  It  is  because  I  do  feel  that  I  can't 
stand  that  lot  of  cads,  what  my  aunt  calls  'bray- 
ing' round  you.  If  you  prefer  them — well,  then 
you'd  better  say  so,  and  I'll  retire.  I  hope  I  have 
the  pluck  to  take  my  defeat  like  a  man." 

"  I  have  no  doubt  you  will,  with  perfect  equa- 
nimity," she  said,  resentfully. 

"Well,  you  remember  what  I  told  you  at  Brack- 
ly.  I  can't  talk  a  lot  of  sentimental  rubbish.  It 
isn't  in  my  line.  If  you  send  me  about  my  busi- 
ness, I  shall  be  awfully  cut  up.  I  shall  never  be 
quite  the  same  fellow  I  was,  again,  I  fancy.  And 
if  you  told  me  to  wait,  I'd  do  it,  if  you  thought 
you  would  get  to  care  for  me.  But  to  make  one 
of  the  crowd,  and  see  you  encouraging  them — no, 
I  can't,  and  I  won't.  I'd  rather  take  the  first  train 
to  New  York,  and  return  to  Europe  at  once." 

"  You  are  quite  at  liberty  to  do  so.  If  you  ex- 
pect an  American  girl  to  give  up  her  old  friends, 
at  your  dictation,  you  are  mistaken." 

" '  Friends '  is  a  convenient  term.  If  they  were 
your  real  friends  I'd  try  and  make  them  mine. 
They  want  to  be  something  more,  and  are  in  real- 
ity much  less.  I  shouldn't  blame  them  for  admir- 


382  A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

ing  you,  God  knows,  if  they  were  true,  honest 
fellows ;  but  they  are  not.  They  are  double-faced. 
They  are  humbugs." 

"  The  fact  is,  you  are  jealous  of  them,"  she  said, 
laughing. 

"I  am  not  so  stupid  as  to  be  seriously  jealous 
of  any  one  of  them;  but  I  am  jealous,  as  every 
Englishman  is,  of  the  girl  he  loves  wasting  her 
sweetness — stooping  to  encourage  a  lot  of  men  he 
thinks  in  every  way  her  inferiors." 

"Dear  me!     Men  are  very  troublesome,"  said 
Miss  Planter,  stooping  to  pick  a  rose,  "  and  Eng- 
lishmen are   the  worst   of   all.     John  Bloxsome 
says — "     Here  she  stopped  short. 
"What  does  Mr.  Bloxsome  say?" 
"He  says  the  English  are  the  most  arrogant 
nation  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  and  I  am  afraid 
he  is  right !   You  are  awfully  stuck  up,  you  really 
are." 

"  Perhaps  I  am,  as  an  Englishman.  I  am  proud 
of  being  one.  Not  as  myself,  Mordaunt  Ballin- 
ger.  I  have  nothing  to  be  stuck  up  about." 

"  No,  indeed !"   pursued  the   girl,  relentlessly. 
"  You  are  very  nice,  of  course,  and  all  that.    But 
there  is  nothing  so  wonderful  about  you." 
"Nothing — except  my  love  for  you." 
He  said  this  with  an  earnestness  unlike  him- 
self. 


A  VOYAGE   OF   DISCOVERY  383 

The  girl  laughed,  but  the  color  deepened  on 
her  cheek,  as  she  replied,  lightly, 

"  Do  you  mean  it  is  wonderful  you  should  care 
for  any  one  ?— or  wonderful  that  I  should  be  the 
present  object  of  your  affections?  I  am  told  they 
change  every  month." 

"  I  recognize  Mr.  Bloxsome  there.  What  I 
meant  was,  that  I  never  expected — that  it  was 
wonderful  to  find  myself  caring  about  any  girl 
as  I  do  about  you." 

Miss  Planter  turned  away,  and  began  humming 
"La  donna  e  mobile."  But  there  was  a  curious 
expression  on  her  face,  an  expression  which  he 
would  probably  have  been  incapable  of  reading, 
had  he  seen  it.  It  told  of  an  internal  struggle 
between  the  forces  which  are  ever  at  war  in  such 
a  woman's  complex  character. 

"All  my  friends  whom  you  abuse  would  give 
up  anything  for  me." 

"  Would  they?    Try  them.     That's  all !" 

"While  you  would  sacrifice  nothing,  not  even 
your  pride.  Look  at  the  other  night !" 

"  You  call  it  pride ;  I  call  it  honesty.  I  won't 
take  the  hands  of  fellows  I  despise,  men  who/or<7e, 
men  who  write  lies  about  me  to  your  father,  and 
lies  about  your  father  to  me.  That's  a  sort  of 
sacrifice  you've  no  right  to  ask.  I  simply  can't 
make  it.  If  Bloxsome  were  to  come  here  I  am 


384  A  VOY.AGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

afraid  I  should  kick  him.  Ask  any  other  sacrifice, 
and  I'll  make  it ;  my  English  home,  my  seat  in  Par- 
liament, I'm  afraid  I'd  give  them  all  up,  though 
I  know  it  would  be  wrong,  if  you  wished  it.  As 
to  money,  I  don't  want  your  father  to  give  you  a 
penny.  I'm  not  rich,  but  I  have  enough  to  sup- 
port a  wife.  All  I  want  is  that  you  should  care 
enough  for  me  to  give  up  those  fellows  for  my 
sake." 

She  looked  at  him  for  a  moment,  steadily. 
Then  she  said,  with  a  flickering  smile, 

"  No.  I  am  not  going  to  give  up  all  indepen- 
dence of  action  yet.  But  here  is  a  boutonnitire 
for  you,"  and  she  gave  him  the  rose  she  had  just 
gathered. 

Nevertheless  the  young  lady  sent  off  three 
telegrams  that  afternoon,  couched  in  the  same 
terms : 

"Sorry  cannot  see  you  on  Sunday.  Shall  be  engaged 
all  day." 

Three  weeks  slid  by ;  weeks  all  too  brief  for 
four  out  of  the  group  of  friends,  two  of  whom 
had  nearly  reached  the  full  of  happiness,  while 
two  were  in  the  crescent  stage,  nearing,  day  by 
day,  the  second  quarter. 

Clare  Planter's  conquest  was  a  slow  one,  if  in- 
deed that  may  be  called  a  conquest  which  is  not 


A  VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  385 

as  yet  proclaimed.  Mr.  Planter's  sudden  decision 
to  leave  Monterey — unshaken,  for  once,  by  his 
wife's  and  daughter's  supplications — was  due,  no 
doubt,  to  some  indication  on  Clare's  part  that  the 
Englishman  was  beginning  to  be  not  absolutely 
indifferent  to  her.  As  long  as  she  encouraged 
a  number  of  other  admirers  her  father  was  not 
alarmed.  But  when  he  learned  that,  on  one  pre- 
text or  another,  she  had  put  some  of  them  off  on 
three  successive  Sundays  (the  only  day  they  could 
get  away  from  business),  when  he  saw  that  the 
Englishman  had  undisputed  possession  of  the  field, 
he  grew  uneasy.  He  spoke  with  great  frankness 
to  Mrs.  Frampton. 

"I  am  going  to  take  my  daughter  right  home. 
My  wife  doesn't  like  it,  but  I  think  it  wiser.  And 
I  have  refused  to  allow  her  and  Clare  to  go  to 
Europe  this  year.  It  is  about  the  first  time  I  ever 
refused  them  anything.  You  and  I,  Mrs.  Framp- 
ton, are  of  one  mind — I  don't  want  my  daughter 
to  marry  an  Englishman  ;  you  don't  want  your 
nephew  to  marry  an  American." 

"  Pardon  me,  Mr.  Planter,"  she  replied,  with 
a  boldness  begotten  of  the  occasion.  "I  have 
no  objection  to  my  nephew  marrying  an  Ameri- 
can ;  and  if  I  had  twenty  objections  they  would 
be  of  no  avail  with  him  on  that  subject.  I  see 
that  now.  He  has  some  regard  for  my  opinion, 
25 


386  A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

but  where  bis  feelings  are  concerned  he  consults 
no  one.  They  are  very  deeply  concerned,  I  am 
afraid,  in  this  case.  He  is  not  rich,  and  I  should 
like  him  to  marry  a  girl  with  some  secured  fort- 
une. That  is  the  only  objection  to  his  marrying 
your  daughter  that  I  can  conceive  upon  our  side, 
though  it  would  not  weigh  with  him  for  a  mo- 
ment. I  understand  that  business  men  in  Amer- 
ica, as  a  rule,  do  not  make  settlements  on  their 
daughters  when  they  marry?" 

"That  is  so.  But — "  Here  he  paused,  then 
went  on.  "  We  need  not  enter  upon  that  matter. 
I  trust  Sir  Mordaunt's  feelings  are  not  as  deeply 
engaged  as  you  imagine.  I  tVust  separation  for 
a  year  will  effectually  cure  him,  and  prevent  this 
folly  going  any  further.  Clare  knows  my  views 
on  the  subject ;  she  has  never  admitted  that  she 
likes  your  nephew  more  than  as  a  friend.  Now, 
then,  with  a  little  tact,  a  little  firmness,  it  seems 
to  me  the  thing  may  be  nipped  in  the  bud." 

"  I  am  afraid  it  is  beyond  the  bud  stage.  Shall 
you  forbid  their  corresponding  ?" 

"  Forbid  ?  No,  indeed,  that  would  be  the  worst 
course.  I  shall  tell  Sir  Mordaunt  frankly  that  I 
cannot  ask  him  to  Pittsburgh,  and  that  I  do  not 
wish  him  and  Clare  to  meet  for  the  present.  In 
the  summer  I  shall  take  the  best  cottage  I  can 
find  at  Newport,  and  entertain  there,  and  have  a 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  387 

yacht,  and  let  my  girl  have  a  good  time.  It  will 
be  strange  if  some  fine  young  fellow  there  can't 
make  her  forget  this  fancy — if  she  really  has  any 
fancy — for  your  nephew." 

Mrs.  Frampton  did  not  think  it  would  be  at 
all  strange,  but  she  held  her  peace.  She  believed 
this  to  be  more  than  a  "  fancy  "  on  the  girl's  part. 
There  was,  however,  the  fact,  so  difficult  to  ex- 
plain, that  she  still  refused  to  bind  herself  by 
any  pledge.  She  told  Mordaunt  she  liked  him 
"awfully,"  but — but — she  was  not  sure  of  her- 
self ;  and  then  papa  would  offer  so  many  objec- 
tions. In  short,  as  his  aunt  knew,  he  had  been 
again  refused.  Nevertheless,  a  strong  impression 
remained  on  Mrs.  Frampton's  mind  that  this  was 
by  no  means  final ;  and  that  clever  lady  had  now 
hoped,  but  failed,  by  a  coup  de  main,  to  wrench 
from  Mr.  Planter  some  avowal  of  what  he  would 
do  for  his  daughter  if,  as  Mrs.  Frampton  put  it  to 
Grace,  "the  worst  comes  to  the, worst." 

To  the  young  man,  the  worst — as  it  seemed  to 
him,  at  least — had  come,  when  he  held  Clare's 
hand  for  the  last  time,  in  the  garden,  the  morn- 
ing of  her  departure. 

"  You  will  forget  all  about  me,  and  be  snapped 
up  by  some  New  York  dude — I  know  you  will," 
he  said.  "A  whole  year  without  seeing  you !  It 
is  too  awful !" 


388  A    VOYAGE    OP   DISCOVERY 

"You  said  something  about  writing  to  me," 
she  observed,  with  a  smile.  "How  can  I  possi- 
bly forget  you,  if  I  have  to  answer  your  letters? 
Besides,  I  have  your  photograph." 

"  But  you  wouldn't  give  me  yours." 

"  Oh !  American  girls  don't  give  their  photo- 
graphs, unless — their  position  is  different  to  mine. 
But  I  shall  have  that  stalwart  form,  that  magnifi- 
cent moustache  before  me,  on  my  writing-table, 
to  refer  to,  in  case  my  memory  becomes  hazy.  I 
don't  see  how  I  can  forget  you." 

She  gave  a  little  laugh,  which  lacked  solidity ; 
he  looked  hurt. 

"  If  you'd  give  me  some  sort  of  promise ;  if 
you'd  hold  out  some  sort  of  hope  that  in  a  year's 
time—" 

"Oh,  dear!  how  tiresome  you  are  !"  she  cried. 
"Can't  you  understand?  can't  you  see  that  only 
time  and  separation  can  show  whether  I  really 
and  truly  care  for  you? — care  for  you  enough  to 
run  counter  to  all  papa's  wishes — dear,  good  old 
papa,  whom  I  hate  to  grieve?  Nothing  would 
justify  my  doing  this  but  caring  about  a  man 
very,  very  much.  I  do  care  for  you  !  There,  I 
have  said  it.  But  I  don't  know  how  much  till  I 
get  away  from  you.  When  a  man  is  about  you, 
all  the  time,  it  is  awfully  hard  to  tell  exactly 
how  much  you  care  for  him.  And  if  my  caring 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  389 

doesn't  stand  this  test,  depend  on  it  you  will  be 

much  better  without  me." 

Here  Mr.  Planter's  voice  was  heard,  shouting, 
"  Clare  !  Where  are  you?  We  are  waiting." 
Their  hands  met,  and  remained  clasped  a  few 

seconds.     Then  they  turned  quickly  towards  the 

hotel,  where   the   omnibus  was   standing,  ready 

laden. 

In  New  York,  a  fortnight  later,  on  the  eve  of 
embarkation,  Grace,  who  had  written  to  Mrs. 
Courtly  to  announce  her  engagement,  received 

the  following  letter: 

"May  1st. 

"My  DEAR  Miss  BALLINGER,— Accept  my  hearty  con- 
gratulations and  best  -wishes  for  your  happiness.  This 
good  news  comes  to  cheer  me  to-day,  when  I  feel  very  sad 
at  heart.  It  was  Impossible  for  me  to  doubt,  even  on  our 
short  acquaintance,  that  whoever  was  fortunate  enough  to 
win  you  would  be  no  ordinary  man.  I  rejoice  to  learn 
that  you  have  found  one  to  whom  you  can  give,  not  only 
your  whole  heart,  but  your  whole  respect  and  admiration. 
Poor  Quintin  Ferrars  !  It  would  not  have  been  possible 
for  you  to  do  that,  under  any  circumstances,  in  his  case. 
He  is  now  free  from  the  terrible  millstone  which  hung 
round  his  neck  more  than  ten  years.  But  of  what  avail 
is  his  freedom  ?  He  will  never  marry  again.  He  under- 
stood, after  his  last  interview  with  you,  how  utterly  hope- 
less his  suit  was,  and  he  sailed  last  month  for  Honolulu. 
You  may  not  be  aware  that  he  studied  medicine  in  early 
life,  and  the  circumstance  of  being  left  a  moderate  fortune, 


390  A   VOYAGE    OF    DISCOVERY 

combined  with  bis  taste  for  literature,  alone  prevented  bis 
following  it  as  a  profession.  He  is  now  resolved  to  devote 
bimself,  for  some  years  to  come,  to  alleviating,  as  far  as 
he  can,  the  condition  of  the  unhappy  lepers  in  the  islands. 
I  cannot  but  feel  that  the  change  in  my  cynical  and,  as 
many  thought,  purely  selfish  friend,  is  due  entirely  to 
you.  You  first  made  him  feel  the  uselessness  of  his  life. 
If  knowing  you  has  led  him  to  experience  the  most  poig- 
nant grief  and  disappointment  be  has  ever  known,  it  has 
also  led  to  the  ennobling  and  purifying  of  his  character. 
Therefore  you  have  nothing  to  regret.  He  is  one  of  the 
men  who  are  born  to  be  unhappy.  But  there  is  a  higher 
and  a  lower  condition  of  unhappiness.  You  have  opened 
the  valve  of  sympathy  with  the  suffering  of  others  ;  that 
is  more  healthy  than  inhaling  over  and  over  again  the 
vitiated  atmosphere  of  personal  misery. 

"And  now  I  come  to  a  far  sadder  episode. 

"  I  had  planned  a  party  of  literary  friends  to  meet  a  few 
days  since,  and  not  having  seen  Mr.  Saul  Barham  since 
you  were  here,  I  wrote  to  ask  him  to  Brackly.  I  did  not 
have  an  answer  for  several  posts,  when  a  letter  came  from 
his  mother,  whom  I  did  not  know,  at  Fellbridge,  saying, 
'My  son  begs  me  to  write  to  you.  He  is  here  with  us, 
very  sick,  and  quite  unable  to  write.  He  was  seized  with 
hemorrhage  of  the  lungs,  while  passing  Sunday  with  us,  a 
fortnight  ago,  since  when  he  has  not  left  his  bed.  He  has 
had  two  subsequent  attacks,  and  grows  weaker  daily.  I 
have  lost  all  hope.  Knowing  what  a  kind  friend  you 
have  been  to  my  dear  son,  I  take  the  liberty  of  asking  if 
you  would  come  and  see  him.  I  think  it  would  be  the 
greatest  consolation  to  him  to  see  you — to  see  any  friend 
who  would  communicate  with  dear  Miss  Ballinger — before 


A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  391 

he  is  taken.  Do  you  know  where  she  is  ?  He  talks  of 
her  all  the  time.  Even  when  he  is  asleep,  I  can  sometimes 
catch  her  name  upon  his  lips.  You  will  forgive  me,  a 
stranger,  for  writing  like  this  to  you,  dear  madam,  and  if 
you  can  come  here  for  an  hour  I  shall  thank  you  from 
the  bottom  of  my  heart. ' 

"  The  simplicity  and  yet  reticence  of  the  heart-stricken 
mother's  letter  touched  me  greatly.  You  can  imagine  I 
did  not  hesitate  an  instant,  but  wired  to  say  I  would  be  at 
Fellbridge  the  same  afternoon. 

"That  visit  was  the  saddest  hour  I  ever  remember,  out- 
side the  personal  troubles  I  have  had  in  life.  The  extreme 
quietude  of  everything  in  that  little  home,  from  the  stern- 
ly-sad, self-contained  father  downwards,  affected  me  far 
more  than  any  noisy  demonstrations  of  grief  would  have 
done.  As  to  the  wan,  gentle  creature  who  met  me  at  the 
door,  I  could  only  think  of  Shakespeare's  line,  '  Dry  sor- 
row drinks  our  blood.'  Her  agony  was  far  too  deep  for 
tears.  When  I  was  admitted  to  the  poor  young  man's 
room,  I  saw  at  once  that  he  had  not  many  days  to  live. 
But  the  light  flickered  up  in  those  wonderful  eyes  of  his, 
as  he  held  out  his  hand  and  thanked  me  for  coming.  His 
first  question  was  for  you.  Where  were  you  ?  Had  I 
heard  from  you  lately  ?  I  could  tell  him  nothing,  except 
that  I  believed  you  to  be  still  in  California.  Then  he  asked 
me  to  transmit  a  message  to  you  whenever  I  could  do  so. 
'  Tell  her,'  he  said, '  that  the  happiest  hours  of  my  life  I 
owe  to  her.  Little  mother  will  not  mind  my  saying  that. 
She  knows  that  the  first  and  only  love  of  my  manhood 
was  for  that  noble  Englishwoman.  If  she  had  returned 
my  love  I  should  have  struggled — fought  for  life.  Per- 
haps I  should  have  won.  As  it  is,  I  am  glad  to  go.  If  it 


392  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

were  not  for  little  mother  I  should  not  have  a  regret.  But 
her  love  is  so  unselfish.  She  has  seen  my  suffering.  She 
has  borne  my  irritability.  She  knows  I  shall  be  happier 
at  rest.' 

"I  sat  with  him  for  some  time,  his  mother  beside  me, 
Mr.  Barham  standing  at  the  foot  of  the  bed.  I  thought  it 
must  wound  him  that  Saul  never  once  alluded  to  his  father 
— appeared  to  think  that  lie  would  never  feel  his  son's 
death.  Was  this  the  result  of  a  principle  of  life-long  sup- 
pression on  the  minister's  part  ?  Could  it  be  that  I,  the 
stranger,  surmised  better  the  intensity  of  the  elder  man's 
feelings  than  did  his  dying  boy  ?  I  know  not ;  I  can 
only  say  what  struck  me. 

"After  a  while  I  saw  that  he  was  exhausted.  Talkin^ 
made  him  cough,  and  there  was  a  thin  red  streak  on  the 
handkerchief  he  held  to  his  mouth.  '  Would  you  object  to 
joining  us  in  prayer  by  my  son's  side  ?'  Mr.  Barham  then 
said,  in  a  perfectly  unemotional  voice.  It  was  the  first 
time  he  had  broken  silence  since  entering  the  room.  I 
instantly  knelt  down,  and,  taking  Saul's  hand  in  mine, 
bowed  my  head,  while  the  minister  with  great  solemnity 
repeated  that  fine  prayer  from  'The  Visitation  of  the 
Sick,'  beginning  'Oh,  Father  of  mercies,  and  God  of  all 
comfort.' 

"  When  he  had  finished,  there  was  silence  for  a  minute 
or  two.  I  looked  up  and  saw  the  poor  mother's  tearless 
eyes  fixed  upon  her  son's.  I  stooped,  as  I  rose  from  my 
knees,  and  kissed  him  on  the  forehead.  'Good-by,'  I 
whispered.  'Good-by,  for  a  little  while.  I  shall  bear 
your  love  to  her,  and  tell  her  you  are  gone  to  await  her 
coming  in  that  glad  place  where  we  all  hope  to  meet.'  His 
beautiful  eyes  alone  answered  me  ;  his  lips  moved,  but  I 


A    VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY  393 

could  not  hear  what  they  murmured.  And  so,  afraid  of 
breaking  down,  I  turned  and  hurried  from  the  room. 

"  On  receiving  your  letter,  I  wrote  at  once  to  Mrs.  Bar- 
ham.  The  answer  came  in  a  telegram  to-day,  which  I  rec- 
ognize as  the  minister's  wording, 

"  '  Saul  departed  this  life  at  daybreak.' 

"So  the  aching  heart  and  troubled  spirit  are  at  rest ; 
and  until  death  summons  the  poor  father  and  mother 
to  rejoin  their  beloved  son,  they  must  wander  wearily 
on,  bereft  of  the  pride  and  joy  of  their  life  ! 

' '  I  will  not  ask  your  forgiveness  for  writing  at  such 
length.  Though  knowing  the  young  man  comparatively 
little,  my  heart  has  been  deeply  stirred.  Yours,  with  much 
greater  reason,  cannot  fail  to  be  so. 

"  I  am,  dear  Miss  Ballinger, 

"  Yours  most  cordially, 

"ANNE  COURTLY." 

This  letter  affected  Grace  Ballinger  deeply. 
It  was  placed  in  her  hand,  with  a  packet  of  oth- 
ers, as  she  stepped  on  board  the  Majestic,  on  her 
homeward  passage,  and  she  read  it  as  they  steamed 
down  the  bay.  Lawrence  found  her  looking  very 
sorrowful,  her  eyes  fixed  on  the  same  shores  she 
remembered  watching  with  Saul,  in  the  fog,  as 
they  stood  on  deck  together  that  January  morn- 
ing less  than  five  months  ago. 

"  Something  has  troubled  you,  dear,"  he  said, 
in  a  low  voice,  as  he  put  his  hand  upon  hers. 
"What  is  it?" 

"  It  is  Life,"  she  answered,  presently.     "  Life, 


394  A   VOYAGE    OF   DISCOVERY 

and  his  brother,  Death.  Read  that."  She  gave 
him  the  letter.  "  I  have  told  you  about  him.  I 
have  told  you  about  both  those  men.  I  knew 
them  both  but  such  a  short  time,  yet  each  inter- 
ested me  deeply ;  and  over  each — I  cannot  under- 
stand how  or  why — I  exercised  some  strange  in- 
fluence. And  now  it  is  all  over.  The  book  is 
closed.  Poor  Saul  Barham,  with  his  brilliant  gifts 
and  high  aspirations,  is  dead.  Quintin  Ferrars  I 
am  never  likely  to  see  again.  Perhaps  it  is  bet- 
ter I  should  not.  But  of  all  the  memories  of 
America  I  bear  away  with  me,  the  most  pathetic 
is  that  of  the  minister's  small  household  in  New 
England,  as  I  knew  it,  with  this  only  son,  their 
idol,  now  lying  in  the  dust.  Can  religion  like 
Mr.  Barham's  bring  consolation?  I  hope  so.  But 
that  poor  mother !  I  think  I  will  return  to 
America  some  day,  if  it  be  only  to  see  her !" 

Nearly  a  year  has  passed  since  then.  Between 
Clare  Planter  and  her  English  admirer  things  re- 
main, to  all  outward  seeming,  very  much  as  they 
were.  Newport  did  not  produce  the  results  so 
confidently  looked  for  by  her  father,  nor  has  New 
York  done  so  during  the  past  winter.  A  constant 
battledore  and  shuttlecock  of  letters — the  punc- 
tuality of  the  interchange  being  broken  only  once 
or  twice,  when  Mordaunt  Ballinger  had  forgotten 
to  post  his  letter  in  time  to  catch  the  American 


A  VOYAGE    OF  DISCOVERY  395 

mail,  never  by  the  young  lady's  own  negligence — 
has  led  Mrs.  Ivor  Lawrence  to  assure  her  aunt  that 
she  must  make  up  her  mind  to  the  inevitable  re- 
sult of  the  Planters'  approaching  arrival  in  Eng- 
land. She  pretends  that  the  American  girl's  lik- 
ing for  her  brother,  having  clearly  resisted  the 
effect  of  separation  and  the  onslaughts  of  other 
admirers,  has  developed  into  a  far  stronger  af- 
fection than  existed  a  year  ago.  She  even  de- 
clares that  she  perceives  in  some  of  the  letters 
Mordaunt  has  shown  her  a  covert  dread  on  Clare's 
part  of  his  constancy  being  put  to  too  severe  a 
test.  But  who  can  tell  ?  This  view  of  the  case 
may  be  only  that  of  a  devoted  sister,  and  Mor- 
daunt's  hopes  may  be  dissipated,  on  the  arrival  of 
the  Planters  in  London, "  like  the  baseless  fabric 
of  a  vision." 


THE   END 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


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